A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) urging the decriminalization of consensual teenage sex has prompted the Supreme Court of India to seek a response from the Centre. The PIL specifically seeks a reevaluation of the statutory rape law applied to 16 to 18-year-old boys and girls engaged in consensual sexual activity. The bench, comprised of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, has issued notices to Union ministries including law and justice, home affairs, and relevant statutory bodies such as the National Commission for Women.
Advocate Harsh Vibhore Singhal, challenging the legality of the law, argued that imposing criminal sanctions on adolescents for non-exploitative, consensual sexual activity is inappropriate. He highlighted adolescents’ physiological, biological, psychological, and social capacities that enable them to comprehend and assess risks. Singhal contended that disparate treatment under this law violates constitutional articles and yields unreliable criminal jurisprudence. Despite affirmative declarations of consent from under 18-year-old individuals, Singhal noted the filing of FIRs, arrests, denial of bail, and distressing interrogations.
In Singhal’s proposal, adolescents aged 16 to under 18 must undergo assessment by a Capacity Assessment Board to ascertain if they possess the attributes necessary to provide informed consent for sexual engagement. The PIL aims to address the disparities in the application of the statutory rape law, emphasizing the need to consider adolescents’ capacities and prevent undue legal consequences.
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