Definition-  Section 375 of Indian penal code

 Rape:- A man is said to commit “rape” who, except case hereinafter excepted, has sexual intercourse with a woman in circumstances falling under any of the six following descriptions:- Firstly. –– Against her will.

Secondly. –– Without her consent.

Thirdly. –– With her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt.

Fourthly. –– With her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband, and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married.

Fifthly. –– With her consent, when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent. Sixthly. –– With or without her consent, when she is under sixteen years of age.

Explanation. –– Penetration is sufficient to constitute the sexual intercourse necessary to the offence of rape.

Exception. –– Sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under fifteen years of age, is not rape.

RAPE’S IN INDIA  

Rape is the fourth most common crime against women in India. According to the 2019 annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 32033 rape cases were registered across the country, or an average of 88 cases daily, slightly lower than 2018. when 91 cases were registered daily Of these, 30,165 rapes were committed by perpetrators known to the victim (94.2% of cases) a high number similar to 2018.The share of victims who were minors or below 18 – the legal age of consent – stood at 15.4%,down from 27.8% in 2018.On the other hand, rapes by juveniles remained high in India with 3 minors being arrested for rape, assault and attempted violence on women and girls each day in 2019.

India has been characterised as one of the “countries with the lowest per capita rates of rape”. The government also classifies consensual sex committed on the false promise of marriage as rape. The willingness to report rapes have increased in recent years, after several incidents received widespread media attention and triggered local and nationwide public protests. This led the government to reform its penal code for crimes of rape and sexual assault.

According to NCRB 2019 statistics, Rajasthan reported the highest number of rapes among Indian states. Other states in the hindi heartland region, across North India, such as Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Chhattisgarh, also have the highest incidence of sexual violence against women.  Among metropolitan cities, the national capital of Delhi continued to have the highest incidence of rape at 1253 cases in 2019, while Jaipur had the highest rape rate (per 100,000 population).

LEGAL RESPONSE –

The Indian law prior to the Nirbhaya Incident took into account only acts of penile-vaginal intercourse within the definition of rape and forcible acts of penetration of vagina, mouth, urethra or anus through penis or an inanimate object did not fall within the definition of rape. Many rapists were not prosecuted because there was no law to punish such acts. The definition was expanded in 2013 to consider rape as any acts like penetration by penis, or any object or any part of body to any extent, into the vagina, mouth, urethra or anus of a woman or making her to do so with another person or applying of mouth to sexual organs without the consent or will of the woman constitutes the offence of rape.

The section has also clarified that penetration means “penetration to any extent”, and lack of physical resistance is immaterial for constituting an offence. Except in certain aggravated situation the punishment will be imprisonment not less than seven years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine. In aggravated situations, punishment will be rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine.

RAPE CASE-

Ajmer rape case

In 1992, the Ajmer rape case was one of India’s biggest cases of coerced sexual exploitation, with more than a hundred underage schoolgirls estimated to have been sexually molested and raped. Most accused were from the Ajmer Dargah of Moinuddin Chishti.

2013 Mumbai gang rape

In August 2013, a 22-year-old photojournalist, who was interning with an English-language magazine in Mumbai, was gang-raped by five persons, including a juvenile, when she had gone to the deserted Shakti Mills compound, near Mahalaxmi in South Mumbai, with a male colleague on an assignment. This caused protests throughout the country since Mumbai with its very active nightlife was previously considered a safe haven for women. The city sessions court found the accused guilty and sentenced death penalty to the three repeat offenders in the Shakti Mills gang rape case, making them the first in the country to get the death sentence stipulated under the newly enacted Section 376E of the Indian Penal Code.

Ranaghat case

On 14 March 2015, a 71-year-old nun was gang-raped in Ranaghat, West Bengal by intruders at the Convent of Jesus and Mary. The six intruders were recorded on CCTV during their crime of ransacking the chapel, destroying religious items, looting cash and the gang rape. Six men were arrested and charged with the crime by 1 April 2015, and identified to be Bangladeshi Muslims.

EDUCATION PROGRAMMES-

In February 2017, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare unveiled resource material relating to health issues to be used as a part of a nationwide adolescent peer-education plan called Saathiya. Among other subjects, the material discusses relationships and consent. The material states, “Yes, adolescents frequently fall in love. They can feel attraction for a friend or any individual of the same or opposite sex. It is normal to have special feelings for someone. It is important for adolescents to understand that such relationships are based on mutual consent, trust, transparency and respect. It is alright to talk about such feelings to the person for whom you have them but always in a respectful manner.  Boys should understand that when a girl says ‘no’ it means no.”