Condemning all marriages as violent not advisable: Smriti Irani

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New Delhi, February 2

Noting that protection and welfare of women and children in the country has been government’s priority, Union Minister Smriti Irani today asserted in the Rajya Sabha that condemning every marriage as violent and every man as a rapist was not advisable.

The minister said this while responding to a supplementary query by CPI leader Binoy Viswam on the issue of marital rape, as he sought to know if the government had taken note of Section 3 of the Domestic Violence Act on the definition of domestic violence as well as Section 375 of the IPC on rape.

She said the senior member knows that Rule 47 of the procedures in the Rajya Sabha disallows elaboration on a subject that is currently sub judice.

On marital rape

To condemn every marriage in this country as violent and to condemn every man in the country as a rapist is not advisable. —Smriti Irani, Union minister

The minister, however, said it was the priority of the government to protect women in collaboration with state governments. “Currently, over 30 helplines are functional across India, which have assisted over 66 lakh women. Besides, 703 one-stop centres are functional in the country and these have assisted over five lakh women,” she said.

“The protection of women and children is a priority for all but yet again, let me reiterate that to condemn every marriage in this country as violent is not advisable,” she insisted. While putting up his second supplementary query, Viswam said he never meant every man was a rapist, and asked if the government could collect data on the issue and submit it to Parliament at the earliest.