With a measure submitted on Friday proposing a particular provision to deal with these offenses for the first time, marrying a woman while hiding identity or engaging in sexual activity while under false promise of marriage, promotion, or job will result in up to 10 years in jail.
The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Bill, which would replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC) of 1860, was submitted in the Lok Sabha by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He said that clauses pertaining to crimes against women had received particular attention.
“Crime against women and a number of the societal issues that they encounter are addressed in this law. It would now be illegal to engage in sexual activity with women while making false promises of marriage, job, promotion, or fake identity, he added.
Although courts have dealt with situations where women claimed rape based on a broken marriage pledge, the IPC does not include any particular provisions for this.
According to the bill, which will now be reviewed by a standing committee, “Whoever, by deceitful means or making by promise to marry to a woman without any intention of fulfilling same, and has sexual intercourse with her, such sexual intercourse not amounting to the offence of rape, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years and shall also be liable to fine.”
The use of “deceitful means” is further defined as “marrying after suppressing identity” or making false promises of job or advancement.
According to senior criminal attorney Shilpi Jain, the lack of such a clause resulted in instances not being considered crimes and leaving room for a lot of interpretation on both sides.
Some people believed that the particular clause regarding “marrying after suppressing identity” was directed at interfaith weddings that took place under fake identities, but Jain told PTI that was up for debate.
The crucial element in this situation, according to her, is that the victim’s permission obtained under duress cannot be referred to as voluntary.
“Men who have sex with women after promising them marriage in our country are exploiting them, and it’s illegal if men at the time of making the promise had no intention to get married,” she stated.
Jain, however, noted that it may not be the best course of action to combine the false promise of marriage with the promise of work or advancement under this clause.
“The promise of work or promotion cannot be compared to the promise of marriage since marriage is built on love and trust whereas employment or promotion promises are perks that women accept in exchange for sex. It’s a partnership that both parties gain from.
“When a woman knows what she is getting into — that is, sex in exchange for employment or promotion — then it is not under deceitful or false promise,” she asserts.
Voyeurism is now a criminal that carries a three- to seven-year sentence and is no longer gender specific.
Shah said that the modifications were implemented to deliver quick justice and build a judicial system that takes into account peoples’ modern demands and ambitions.
“There will be a 20-year to life sentence as punishment for all gang rape cases. The penalty for raping a girl under the age of 18 will be death, he said.
The bill states that the minimum sentence for murder is the death penalty or life in prison, the minimum sentence for rape is 10 years in prison or life in prison, and the minimum sentence for gang rape is at least 20 years in prison or life in prison for the offender.
The bills state that the offender shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term that shall not be less than 20 years but which may extend to imprisonment for life, which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person’s natural life, or with death if the victim of the rape dies as a result of the attack or develops a persistent vegetative state.
If a girl under the age of 12 is raped, the offender faces a minimum sentence of 20 years in prison, a maximum sentence of life in prison (meaning they will be imprisoned for the rest of their natural lives), a fine, or even the death penalty.
Rape offenders must serve a minimum of 10 years in a strict jail, but their sentences may run as long as life in prison. They must also pay a fine.
If a police officer, government employee, or anybody serving in the military forces commits rape, they must be punished with strict imprisonment for a period that must not be less than 10 years but may go as far as life.
