Politics
Delhi HC denies personal law shield in POCSO case
Hindustan Times··3h ago
The Delhi High Court directed a man to face trial under the POCSO Act for sexual relations with his minor wife. Justice Sanjeev Narula held that personal law cannot exempt liability under POCSO and the BNS. The woman was 16 and the man was 28 when they married. The court said marriage does not change a child's age for consent.
Prism
What It Means For You
- A claimed personal-law marriage does not stop a POCSO or BNS prosecution where the wife was under eighteen.
- The couple had sought quashing; the court instead directed the husband to face trial.
- Police action followed after the wife presented at a government hospital about eight months pregnant.
What's Happening
- Justice Sanjeev Narula's September 23 verdict was released on Saturday.
- Charges include rape under section 63 of the BNS and section 6 of the POCSO Act.
- The pair argued they were validly married under Muslim personal law.
Which statutes fixed the consent age
- POCSO and the BNS both fix eighteen as the threshold for sexual consent.
- The BNS withholds the marital exception where the wife is below eighteen.
- The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 defines a female below eighteen as a child.
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