On Wednesday, the Delhi High Court delivered a split verdict on the question of criminalising marital rape. Justice Rajiv Shakdher who headed the Bench, said that the right to withdraw consent (for sex) formed the core of the woman’s right to life and liberty. Justice C. Hari Shankar disagreed that consent alone mattered and marriage changed nothing. He said marriage is accompanied by obligations that the partners have to bear including conjugal expectations. Data from NFHS-5(2019-21)* show that over 95% of married women in India who endured sexual violence identified their husbands/former husbands as the perpetrator. Worryingly, over 90% of those who endured sexual violence did not seek help from anyone. Even among those who did, none approached a lawyer to seek legal recourse. More than 70% took help from their own family or husband’s family. About 18% of married women said they cannot say ‘no’ to their husbands even if they did not want to have sexual intercourse. About 20% of husbands said they would get angry and reprimand their wives for refusing to have sex, while about 13% said they would refuse financial support. Given that only 27% of married women are employed compared to 92% of married men, such threats force women to endure violence
Source of crime
The tree map shows the % of married women in India who identified the following individuals as those who forced them for the first time to have sexual intercourse or perform any other sexual acts
Chart appears incomplete? Click to remove AMP mode
Source of help
Only 9.5% of women in India who have experienced sexual violence sought help. The tree map depicts the persons they approached for help
Financial dependence
Only about 27% of married women were employed compared to 92% of married men. Even among women who worked, a majority earned less than men
Sexual coercion
Over 18% of married women said they cannot refuse their husbands sex. About 20% of men said they would get angry if their wives denied them sex and about 13% each said they would refuse financial support or use force to have sex
Source: National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-21)
Also read: The importance of consent: On marital rape
