A three-judge Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud on Friday, hearing a Public Interest Litigation that seeks decriminalising of consensual teenage sex, has sought the views of the central government with regard to application of the 'Romeo-Juliet law' in cases of underage but consensual sex.
What does the PIL seek?
The PIL seeks decriminalising of consensual sex since, it says, there are a large number of cases where a boy who is over 18 years of age engages in consensual sex with a girl who is not yet 18 years old, and the boy is tried for rape if a complaint is lodged by the girl's parents.
Consent of a child who is not yet 18 years old is immaterial under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. Any person who attempts to have a sexual activity with a child who under 18 years old is guilty of sexual assault. Under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, sex with a girl who is under 16 years of age is considered rape even if the girl has given her consent.
The petition focuses on instances where the girl is in the 16-18 age group, and the boy is just over 18 years of age. It states that in many such cases, the boy gets arrested if a case is filed by the girl's kin, and this leads to stigmatisation of the boy. The plea seeks decriminalisation of consensual sex between girls who are over 16 years old and not yet 18, and boys who are between 16 and 20 years old.
What is 'Romeo-Juliet law'?
The Supreme Court has sought the Centre's views on whether the 'Romeo-Juliet law', which is in operation in many countries in cases of consensual teenage sex, can be applied to such cases in India.
Since 2007, many countries have adopted the Romeo-Juliet law to treat cases of consensual sex where the girl could be a teenager and not yet a major and the boy is an adult outside the ambit of the traditional laws dealing with sexual assault on women.
The Romeo-Juliet law protects the boy from arrest if the age difference between the boy and the girl who have engaged in consensual sex is not more than four years.
The title of the law is derived from William Shakespeare's 'Romeo & Juliet', the tragic love story of two teenaged lovers.