Karnataka High Court Refuses to Quash Rape Case Against Husband
The Karnataka High Court has refused to dismiss charges of rape, cruelty, and other offenses against a husband. The case stems from the wife’s allegations of severe physical and mental abuse, which led her to file a complaint against her husband.
After several years of marriage, the relationship between the couple deteriorated. The wife reported multiple instances of physical and mental torture inflicted on her and their child. She lodged a complaint against her husband under Sections 506 (criminal intimidation), 498A (cruelty to wife), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 377 (unnatural offenses) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and Section 10 (aggravated sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO).
The Special Court framed charges against the husband under Sections 376 (rape), 498A, and 506 of IPC, and Sections 5(m) and 5(l) read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act.
Justice M. Nagaprasanna, a single-judge, stated that marriage should not be used to justify the brutal treatment of a spouse. The court noted that the wife’s complaint included allegations of severe sexual abuse by the husband, which led to the charges.
The wife’s complaint described her as a “sex slave” to her husband from the beginning of their marriage. She alleged that her husband forced her into unnatural sexual acts, including anal and oral sex, even during her pregnancy. He continued to force her into sexual acts after the termination of her pregnancy, often in front of their daughter. The wife also claimed that her husband sexually abused their daughter.
The court emphasized that a man assaulting or raping a woman is punishable under Section 376 of IPC, regardless of marital status. It concluded that the charges against the husband for raping his wife should proceed to trial.
The court criticized the exception for husbands under Section 375 of IPC, calling it regressive. It noted that while other men are punished for sexual offenses, husbands are exempted under this section. The court highlighted that many countries, including the United Kingdom, have made marital rape illegal, removing such exceptions.
Justice Nagaprasanna stated, “A man is a man; an act is an act; rape is a rape, whether performed by a husband or any other man.” The court upheld the charge of rape against the husband, clarifying that it is not making a broader ruling on the legality of marital rape, but only addressing the specific charges in this case.
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