CLPR on behalf of the petitioner trust, Aweksha Women’s Charitable Trust, has filed a Public Interest Litigation under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. It challenges Exception 2 of Section 63 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which exempts rape in the context of marriage. It is argued that the provision violates Articles 14, 15(1) and 21 of the Constitution of India.
The petitioners refer to the Justice J.S. Verma (Retd.) Committee’s Report on Amendment to Criminal Law, 2013, which had recommended that marital rape be removed from the exceptions to the offence of rape. However, this recommendation has not come to effect. Many SLPs and Civil Appeals have been filed challenging this provision, both at the time of IPC and now, BNS. One such case was the RIT Foundation v. Union of India (W.P. (C) No.284 of 2015), in which the Delhi High Court famously passed a split verdict in challenging the constitutionality of the Second Exception to Section 375 of the IPC.
Notice was issued in the matter on 23rd May 2025 and tagged with connected matters.