Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, the marital rape exception (Exception 2 to Section 63) states that sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife is not rape provided the wife is not below which age?
- A 15 years
- B 16 years
- C 18 years ✓
- D 21 years
Correct answer: C. 18 years
Explanation
Following the Supreme Court decision in Independent Thought v. Union of India, which read down Exception 2 to Section 375 IPC, the corresponding provision in Section 63 BNS exempts marital intercourse only when the wife is not under 18 years. Intercourse with a wife below 18 years therefore constitutes rape. Fifteen years was the old threshold before the 2017 judgment, and 16 and 21 years were never the statutory cut-off for this exception.
Reference: Parikh's Textbook of Medical Jurisprudence, Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, 6th ed.
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