Atrocities on Women

“I am not finding pregnancy much of a joy. I am afraid of childbirth, but I am afraid I can’t find a way of avoiding it.” Teenage is a crucial growth phase in the life of any individual fraught with physiological changes and often, psychological conflicts. In this condition, finding oneself to be a pregnant teenager can come down as shocking and even traumatizing for the individual, as-well-as, for her family and friends.  Teenage pregnancy is the occurrence of pregnancy in females under the age of twenty. Teenagers belong to the age group of thirteen to twenty, and while teenagers are not practically children, they aren’t adults either, and this phase of confusion puts them at a greater risk. As sexual development sets in, teenagers are hounded by curiosity to explore their bodies. Due to a lack of awareness regarding sex, they often engage in unsafe sex, eventually becoming teenage parents. Mostly such pregnancies are unplanned, and minors are not ready to bear the responsibiliti...

On Friday (February 2nd), a Supreme Court bench headed by the Chief Justice of India heard a petition for making laws pertaining to rape, sexual harassment, stalking, voyeurism, outraging the modesty etc. gender neutral. The plea filed by a SC lawyer Rishi Malhotra argued that the word “any man” used under these offences in Indian Penal Code be declared  ultra vires  the Constitution. A similar petition was also taken up in the Delhi High Court last year by Sanjiv Kumar, seeking the amendment of rape laws to be made gender-neutral through challenging the Constitutional validity of Sections 375 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code.  The Delhi High Court hearing  the case  in September 2017, sought the government’s response in this matter. The case will be coming up once again before the bench on 5th March 2018. The issue of gender-neutral rape laws received attention during the passage of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 which contained gen...