NEW DELHI: The Centre on Friday told Delhi high court it would argue next week to press for deference of hearings, as sought in its latest affidavit on a batch of petitions on the issue of marital rape. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta apprised a bench of Justices Rajiv Shakdher and C Hari Shankar about the additional affidavit filed by the Centre on Thursday.
Senior advocate Colin Gonsalves, appearing for a woman petitioner, referred to a report of law commission of the UK and certain judgments of the SC of India in support of his submissions to criminalise marital rape.
He submitted that the court couldn’t desist from dealing with the constitutionality of the exception on the ground that it would be impossible for the woman to prove marital rape since it sometimes happened in the confines of the household and in private.
If the high court sets aside the exemption given to husbands under IPC 375, the question of punishment for it lies in the domain of Parliament, he added.