A decade ago, India introduced a tough new law to deal with cases of child sexual abuse. There is now a growing demand among teenagers for consensual sex to decriminalize it.
A 16-year-old girl was allegedly raped in a district of Delhi, but the girl told the police that she was not raped. ‘I went to him of my own free will,’ she said.
The girl’s parents had lodged a complaint against a teenage boy from the neighbourhood. The boy was arrested at the behest of the parents, who were demanding that the boy be prosecuted for rape. The boy was released after the statement of the girl.
The latest figures of the Indian National Family Health Survey show that people in India are having sex at a young age. More than 39 percent of Indian women have had sex before the age of 18.
10 percent in the 25-49 age group said they had a sexual relationship before the age of 15. However, here it should not be seen in relation to consent. However, in the rest of the world, including many South Asian countries, the age of consent remains 16.
Age and Sex of Indian Women
According to the survey, Indian women had sex for the first time before the age of 18 years. 58 percent of women had their first sexual relationship by age 20.
In contrast, men had sex for the first time at an average age of 24, five years later than women. Is. One percent of men had had sex for the first time by age 15 and 7% had sex before age 18.
Women in India get married much earlier than men, the age at which they have sex is much lower.
At what age do women and men have sex for the first time
Age group 15 to 19: 1.2 percent of women admitted to having had sex by age 15
Age group 20 to 24: 3.4 percent of women reported having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 25 to 29: 6.5 percent women admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 30 to 34: 9.7 percent of women admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 35 to 39: 11: 3 percent of women admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 40 to 45: 12.8 percent women admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse at age 15
Age group 45 to 49: 12.7 percent of women admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Male
Age group 15 to 19: 0.7 percent of men admitted to having had sex by age 15
Age group 20 to 24: 0.3 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 25 to 29: 0.6 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 35 to 39: 1.0 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 35 to 39: 1.0 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 40 to 45: 1.1 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Age group 45 to 49: 0.6 percent of men admitted to having had their first sexual intercourse by age 15
Why are women having sex at a young age
In India, a big difference was seen in having sex between men and women. The biggest reason for this difference is the age of marriage. Statistics show that women are married at a young age, so women have sex at a young age.
The report of the Indian National Family Health Survey says that sex before marriage is still taboo in large parts of the country. That’s why even men hesitate to have a relationship before marriage. The figures for different states are something like this.
- Chhattisgarh – 15-24 age group – 21.1% men have had premarital sex
- Madhya Pradesh – 15-24 age group – 21.1% men have had premarital sex
- Rajasthan – 15-24 age group – 22.0% men had sex before marriage
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Statistics show that North Indians lead a more active sex life than South Indians. In states like Haryana, Punjab, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal, more than 55% of men and women reported having sex in the four weeks before the survey. Other states where the majority reported having an active sex life are Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Women are more sexually active than men
According to the report of the Indian National Family Health Survey, 47% of men and 48% of women at the national level accepted having sex in the last four weeks. The figures were based purely on conversation.
The proportion of single men who admitted to being sexually active was 3%. Who agreed to have sex 4 weeks ago. Among single women, this figure is less than 1%.
In states like Punjab, Haryana, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, the proportion of sexually active single men is relatively above 5%). Which is more than other states.
Who do single women and men have sex with
Twelve percent of single men who have had sex reported having sex with acquaintances. While 6% of such men told about having a relationship with a sex worker.
Such figures were rarely seen in single women. A proportion of women admitted that they have sex with acquaintances.
It is also mentioned in the report that women and girls in India hesitate to talk about this type of relationship, it may be that half of the figures told are hidden.
Urban-Rural Difference
The research also revealed that urban women in the 25-49 age group have sex about two years later than rural women.
Urban women had their first relationship at an average age of 20, while women in rural areas had sex at an average age of 18.
The study also found that educated women had sex for the first time late as compared to uneducated women. Girls in rural areas get married after 12th and become sexually active.
Poxo Act- more cases of voluntary sex
Stronger laws like POCSO were needed to curb the growing incidence of child sexual abuse – according to a 2007 government study, 53% of girl children said they had faced some form of sexual abuse.
According to the POCSO law, the age of sexual consent has been increased from 16 to 18. Which effectively turned millions of teenagers into criminals if they had sex.
Tell that there are more than 253 million teenagers in India. Which is the highest in the world. Surveys show that a large number are sexually active.
Parents resort to law to control the sexuality of girls
According to the National Family Health Survey report, child rights activists believe that parents often resort to the law to control girls’ sexuality and prevent them from forming ‘relationships’
Parents also do this to protect them from inter-caste or inter-religious relations. Child rights activists argue that criminalizing consensual sexual activity is ruining lives. Also raising questions on the justice system.
Researchers from child rights charity Enfold Proactive Health Trust studied 7,064 POCSO court judgments delivered between 2016 and 2020 in three Indian states – West Bengal, Assam and Maharashtra.
About half of the cases involved girls aged 16 to 18. The study also found that 1,715 cases, or one in four, fell into the ‘romantic’ category.
The report says that if this number is collected from all over India, then this number will be much higher, because in thousands of POCSO cases reported every year, it is said that the culprits were ‘friends / online friends or left on the pretext of marriage. -were living in.
said in the report "Criminalizing juvenile sexual activity shows that the law does not want to keep pace with reality.
Most of the POCSO cases are romantic
It has also been told in the National Family Health Survey that most of the cases of Poxo prove to be romantic cases. In which later the boy is acquitted. Such cases came to 1,609 or 93.8 percent in 2019, while the case of coercion was kept in the category of exception. Reported only in 106 cases (6.2%).
Means the cases with punishment were very less. In 87.9% of the cases, the girls confessed to being in love with the accused. In 81.5% of the cases, they did not say anything offensive against their partner. In some cases they said they were pressured by their families.
The increased acquittal rate also shows that trial courts often "Romantic" Adopts a soft approach while dealing with matters.
In the past few years, the Supreme Court of India has also expressed concern about the criminalization of consensual sex with adolescent girls or adolescents.
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