Ritik Gupta
Rape – A man is said to commit “rape” who, except in the case hereinafter excepted, has sexual intercourse with a woman under circumstances falling under any of the six following descriptions:-
- First – Against her will.
- Secondly – Without her consent.
- Thirdly – With her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested in fear of death or of hurt.
- Fourthly – With her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband, and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married.
- Fifthly – With her consent, when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent.
- Sixthly – With or without her consent, when she is under sixteen years of age.
Explanation – Penetration is sufficient to constitute the sexual intercourse necessary to the offence of rape. Exception.-Sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under fifteen years of age, is not rape.
Under section 375, consent is defined as clear and voluntary communication given by a woman for a given sexual act. As long as the woman is above the age of 18, marital rape is a clear exception to giving consent since marital rape is not a crime under the Indian Penal Code.
Amendment to Section 375 of IPC
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, was passed in Parliament to alter Section 375. To remove indistinctness in the law and provide for strict punishment in cases of rarest cases of sexual violence, the legislation was expanded to define acts like penetration of penis into vagina, urethra, anus or mouth, or any object or any part of body to any extent into the aforesaid woman body parts (or making another person do so), as constituting an offence of sexual assault. Applying mouth or touching private parts were also classified as offences of sexual assault.
