New Delhi: With Supreme Court Scheduling Day-TO-Day Final Hearing from NEVEMBER 12 on Petitions Seeking Lowering of Age of Consent from 18 to 16 to 16 years, Amicus Curiae and Senior Advocate India JAISING SAID ON Wednsday Adlescents, Who are Attaining Puberty Sooner Than Ever, Can Give Mature Consent for Sexual Relationships.With a host of interveners supporting Center’s stand against Lowering age of consent, jaizing told a bench of justices vikram nath, sandeep mehta and nv anjaria that in the present age and time, adoles Getting sexually aware is part and parcel of natural attraction between sexes leading to development of sexual relationships of choice.The amicus argued that there is no employical data or research to indicate that persons aged between 16 and 18 are incapable of making mature decisions in Relations to their sexual preferences and activities. On the contrary, global trends indicate that decisions in Relations to sexual activity can be made from the age of 16.Sheid Decriminalising Consensual Sexual Activity Between Adolesments in the age bracket of 16-18 years along with focus on sexual education will ensure non-captive and non-absolutely sexual Relationships.“It will also lower cases that everything always has to grapple with, where the relationship relationships have been criminalized, leading to incarcented couples, who have the intention of the intention Statute, “Jaising said.However, as many as seven interveners, Including Dr Ambedkar Jankalyan Samiti and Center for Social Development, Argued that Reducing the age of consent would be misaced to manipulathe and take Crime out of POCSO Act, which was enacted to protect them against sexual exploitation. It may also lead to child marriages, they feared.Jaising said criminalising Such Consensual Sexual Relationships Bold Force Teenagers to get married to avoid prosecution. Citing National Health and Family Survey-5, Sheid 45% Teenage Girls in the age group of 15-19 had sexual intercourse.Dr Ambedkar Jankalyan Samiti Apprehended that Lowering Age of Consent will also lead to Increasing offenses of Illegal Religious Conversion and Marriage through Mala Fide Inducement. The samiti and csd argued that the age of consent and its genuineness can be decided by courts on a case to case baseless without giving blanket immunity from pocso act.
