NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday assured the petitioners that it would hear the batch of pleas challenging the marital rape exception under the new criminal laws next week.
The three-judge bench of the apex court, led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, while taking on the submissions of senior advocate Karuna Nandy, appearing for one of the petitioners in the case, said the pleas will be heard next week.
The CJI, said, as the bench would be busy this week in dealing with a batch of matters on taxation laws. so the marital rape matter would be taken up for hearing next week.
Senior advocate Indira Jaising, also appearing for one of the petitioners -- All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) -- in the marital rape case, had in the last hearing, requested the top court that due importance should be given to the issue.
There was a batch of pleas pending in the top court for hearing, including the of plea of AIDWA challenging the marital rape exception under the new criminal laws.
Two-judge Bench of the Delhi High Court had on May 12, 2022, in their verdict, had pronounced a split judgement on the issue related to criminalising marital rape. Delhi HC's Judge Justice Rajiv Shakdher ruled in favour of criminalising it, while Justice C Hari Shankar disagreed with the opinion and held that Exception 2 to Section 375 does not violate the Constitution as it is based on intelligible differences.
After this, many petitions filed before the Supreme Court, challenging the Delhi HC verdict and sought appropriate directions, including that of making marital rape as an offence.