Legal discrimination against female in relation to sexual rights (Adultery Law-497 IPC)

RTI information from Home Department reveals legal discrimination against female in relation to sexual rights. 

Wife can’t file criminal case against hubby’s ‘keep’ under IPC; BUT, man can: RTI.

Extramarital sex by husband is not a crime but by wife it would come under crime.

The discrimination as far as female is concerned are as follows: 

1. There is NO section in Indian Penal Code which permits the WIFE to file a criminal case against the OTHER PERSON with whom the HUSBAND had a consensual sexual intercourse without the consent or connivance of his WIFE. BUT, husband can file a case against the man with whom his wife had consensual sex. 

2. There is NO section in Indian Penal Code or any other law in force at present which says that, if HUSBAND had a sexual intercourse with OTHER PERSON without the consent or connivance of his WIFE then that OTHER PERSON is guilty of the criminally punishable offence. BUT, law says, if wife had sex with other person then the other person is guilty of the offence of the adultery. 

3. There is NO section in Indian Penal Code which says that HUSBAND cannot have consensual sexual intercourse with OTHER PERSON without the consent or connivance of his WIFE. BUT, law says that wife cannot have sex with other person without the consent or connivance of her husband.

Though article 15 of our constitution of India prohibits discrimination on grounds of sex, our Indian Penal Code has discriminated it legally.

Thus, our Indian laws, in ultimate analysis, unfortunately endorses that the WIFE IS THE PROPERTY OF THE HUSBAND and conveys that a man is entitled to have exclusive possession of, and access to, his wife's sexuality, and a woman is not eligible to have such an exclusive right and claim over her husband. She is, therefore, not entitled to prosecute either her promiscuous husband or the "outsider woman" with whom her husband had consensual sex.

माहितीच्या अधिकारात माहिती-

पत्नी, परस्त्रीविरुद्ध पतीसोबत असलेल्या लैंगिक संबंधासाठी गुन्हा दाखल करू शकत नाही; परंतु, पती यासाठी परपुरुषाविरुद्ध गुन्हा दाखल करू शकतो. विवाहबाह्य लैंगिक संबंध पतीने केल्यास गुन्हा नाही; पण पत्नीने केल्यास तो गुन्हा आहे.

भारतीय संविधानाचा अनुच्छेद १५, लिंगावरून कुठल्याही प्रकारचा भेदभाव करण्यास मनाई करतो. तरीही अश्या घटनाबाह्य भेदभावाला भारतीय दंड विधानाची (भा. द. वि.) कलम ४९७ कायदेशीर मान्यता देते. भा. द. वि. ची कलम ४९७ जी परगमन (जारकर्म- अडलट्री) याला गुन्हा म्हणून संबोधित करत जरी असली तरी, ती स्त्रियांच्या बाबतीत भेदभाव करते; असे माहितीच्या अधिकारात उघड झाले आहे.

यावरून असे दिसून येते कि, आपले भारतीय कायदे; पत्नीला पतीची मालमत्ता मानतात व असे अभिव्यक्त करतात कि पत्नीच्या लैंगिकते वर तिचा स्वतःचा नाही, तर फक्त पतीचा ताबा आहे. परंतु, असा अधिकार पत्नीला पतीच्या लैंगिकतेवर नाही. त्यामुळे, पती ज्याप्रमाणे पत्नीच्या आयुष्यात येणाऱ्या परपुरुषावर गुन्हा दाखल करू शकतो; त्याप्रमाणे, पत्नी, पतीच्या आयुष्यात येणाऱ्या परस्त्री विरुद्ध गुन्हा दाखल करू शकत नाही.