A year after it dismissed a PIL seeking criminalisation of marital rape, the Delhi High Court Monday agreed to hear the plea afresh and has asked the Centre to file its response.

The PIL, filed by the RIT Foundation, has sought court orders to strike down the exception granted under Section 375 IPC to alleged “assault” by a husband on a wife.

It sought a declaration that “Section 375 discriminates against married women sexually assaulted by their own husbands (and) is violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution”.

Section 375, which defines “rape” also contains an exception provision which states that the rape law would not apply to assault by a husband on his wife who is above 15 years.

The PIL, filed through advocate Lohitaksha Shukla, has alleged that the exception contradicts the definition and punishment for rape under Section 376 of the IPC — which has fixed the age of consent at 18 — and also creates an “artificial difference” between women who are married and those who are not.

The plea had previously been dismissed by the court on grounds that it was already under consideration before the Supreme Court. However, in the fresh PIL, the petitioners claimed that the issue raised was of dignity of women while the SC was looking into child marriage.

“Issue notice. Centre to file reply within six weeks,” said the bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath. The next hearing is on March 23.

“The law as it stands today violates the dignity of the womenfolk of this country,” states the PIL, adding that the fundamental right to privacy and dignity of married women was being violated by the exception.

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