Violence against women is an agenda of historic power play struggles between men and women, which has led to domination over and discrimination against women by men and to the restriction of the complete progression of women, and that aggression against women is one of the critical social mechanisms by which women are forced into a lower-ranking position compared with men. Marital rape refers to the couple who are legally accepted as husband and wife, where the woman does not give consent for such sexual intercourse. Wedding is an unimpeachable bond in which the man and woman swear to live together in happiness as well as in pain by greeting the flaws of each other. Being a part of the matrimony does not permit the man to forcefully have sex with his wife. The right to have sexual contact must be consensual and not an obligation of the wife. The wife should have the freedom to refuse to have sex and cannot be compelled by her husband to do it. In India the law system even today does not recognize marital rape as a crime. No conclusion has been drawn so far on this debatable issue. According to Indian Penal Code 1860, the definition of Rape under section 375, states that sexual intercourse with a woman would be constituted as rape if it is without her consent. If the consent of the woman is obtained by causing apprehension of grievous hurt or death, it will also be called rape. If a man fraudulently makes the woman believe that he is her husband and has intercourse with her is a rape. If a man has sexual intercourse with a woman who is unable to give consent due to unclear then it would also constitute rape.
EFFECTS OF MARITAL RAPE
Marital rape affects a woman at great level it has always been thought that if a woman is raped by her partner it is comparatively less traumatic for her, but that is a myth. Analysis shows that marital rape has more severe consequences for women because of the simple fact that the rapist is none other than her husband with whom she had expected to spend a lifetime of happiness.
Two categories of the effects of marital rape
- Physical effects – The effects of marital rape include injuries to private organs, bruises , torn muscles , deep cut , extreme tiredness , fractures etc. women who are subjected to physical violence as well as rape suffer from other complications like bruised skin around the eye, broken bones, and wounds inflicted by any sort of a weapon, during sexual violence.
- Psychological effects – The upset a woman goes through when her own husband continually rapes her cannot be explained in words. Some of the short term mental effects are shock, fear, post-traumatic stress, suicidal tendencies etc. The psychological effects are worst than the physical effects, the long term effects include eating disorders, depression , sexual dysfunction
TYPES OF MARITAL RAPE
- Battering rape: In the relationship women experience both physical and sexual violence and they experience this violence in various ways. During the sexual violence, some are battered or the rape may follow a physically violent episode where the husband wants to make up and pressurize his wife to have sex against her will. Marital rape victims fall below this category.
- Force-only rape: Husbands use only the amount of force necessary to pressurize their wives .i.e. rough treatment may not be characteristic of these relationships. The assaults are typically after the woman had denied sexual intercourse.
- Obsessive rape: Different women experience what has been labelled sadistic. These assaults engage torture and sexual acts and are often physically violent.
The thought of a woman being raped by her husband, and the fact that she cannot seek protection under any law in India is very worrying. Marital rape disgraces the holiness of marriage. Marital rape is not justified on the basis of consent. In today’s time women should be mentally prepared and aware about such crimes. Women need to be well-informed about their rights.