ACR hails SC judgment sex age

BY OUR STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI, Oct 11: The Supreme Court’s judgment on sex with one’s wife – if she is below 18 years of age is a crime – is to save many lives. The Adolescent and Child Rights Network, Assam (ACR) hails the landmark judgment. Though it is yet to study the judgment in details, three initial observations can be made. One, the ‘escape route’ of saying that one’s wife is above 15 years of age ill no longer be acceptable to justify sexual intercourse with an under-age  bride. Two, for those who impregte a girl child with or without her consent and subsequently agrees to marry the girl child, usually because of public pressure, the male will be considered to have committed a crime — irrespective of whether the marriage proposed takes place or not and three, this judgment will drastically reduce, if not prevent, child marriage and early pregncy which is a major cause of high materl mortality ratio, nigh neo tal mortality and morbidities in Assam and the country as a whole.