1891 Age of Consent Act
Encyclopedia
The Age of Consent Act, 1891, also Act X of 1891, was a legislation enacted in British India on 19 March 1891 which raised the age of consent
for sexual intercourse for all girls, married or unmarried, from ten to twelve years in all jurisdictions, its violation subject to criminal prosecution as rape. The act was an amendment of the Indian Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure, Section 375, 1882, ("Of Rape"), and was introduced as a bill on 9 January 1891 by Sir Andrew Scoble in the Legislative Council of the Governor-General of India
in Calcutta. It was debated the same day and opposed by council member Sir Romesh Chunder Mitter (from Bengal
) on the grounds that it interfered with orthodox Hindu code, but supported by council member Rao Bahadur Krishnaji Lakshman Nulkar (from Bombay
) and by the President of the council, the Governor-General Lord Lansdowne
.
While an 1880 case in a Bombay high court by a child-bride, Rukhmabai, renewed discussion of such a law, the death of an eleven-year-old Bengali girl, Phulomnee, due to forceful intercourse by her 35 year old husband in 1889, necessitated intervention by the British. The act was passed in 1891. It received support from Indian reformers such as Behramji Malabari
and women social organisations and was opposed by Hindu nationalists including Bal Gangadhar Tilak
. The law was never seriously enforced and it is argued that the real effect of the law was reassertion of Hindu patriarchal control over domestic issues as a nationalistic cause.
girl Phulomnee after being brutally raped by her 35-year-old husband Hari Mohan Maitee in 1889 served as a catalyst for its legislation
While Hindu law permitted intercourse with minors, colonial law considered sex with wives only under ten as rape. Therefore, Hari Mohan Maitee was acquitted on charges of rape, but found guilty on causing death inadvertently by a rash and negligent act.
A committee consisting of influential British and Anglo-Indian statesmen established in London had submitted recommendations to the colonial government including the change in age of consent. The law was signed on 19 March 1891 by the government of Lord Lansdowne raising the age of consent for consummation
from ten to twelve years.
, a Parsi
reformer and a journalist from Bombay advocated for this legislation. He published his messages in "Notes on Infant marriage and enforced widowhood" in 1884. Although a Parsi, he claimed to be as critical of Hindu customs and domestic practices as the British.
Though women were not consulted for determining the effect of child-marriage, women in Bombay presidency including Rukhmabai and Pandita Ramabai
made a cogent case for the ban on child-marriage in their magazines and social reform organisations. Anandi Gopal Joshi
, a Maharashtrian woman who also happened to be the first female medical doctor in India advocated interference of the British Government in child marriage.
orthodox backlash. Opposition to the bill in Maharashtra was led by Bal Gangadhar Tilak
and Poona Sarvajanik Sabha in alliance with Poona revivalists, who often invoked Hindu, Brahman
and Maratha
glory. Tilak opposed the bill on the grounds that this was not an issue for the British but Hindus to decide. It was strongly opposed in Bengal as well and it is believed that the bill radicalised the nationalist movement in Bengal.
Orthodox Hindus argued that it violated Hindu rite "garbadhan," which obligated Hindu girls to have intercourse with her husband within sixteen days of her first period.
Age of consent
While the phrase age of consent typically does not appear in legal statutes, when used in relation to sexual activity, the age of consent is the minimum age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to sexual acts. The European Union calls it the legal age for sexual...
for sexual intercourse for all girls, married or unmarried, from ten to twelve years in all jurisdictions, its violation subject to criminal prosecution as rape. The act was an amendment of the Indian Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure, Section 375, 1882, ("Of Rape"), and was introduced as a bill on 9 January 1891 by Sir Andrew Scoble in the Legislative Council of the Governor-General of India
Governor-General of India
The Governor-General of India was the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the monarch and de facto head of state. The office was created in 1773, with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William...
in Calcutta. It was debated the same day and opposed by council member Sir Romesh Chunder Mitter (from Bengal
Bengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency originally comprising east and west Bengal, was a colonial region of the British Empire in South-Asia and beyond it. It comprised areas which are now within Bangladesh, and the present day Indian States of West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Orissa and Tripura.Penang and...
) on the grounds that it interfered with orthodox Hindu code, but supported by council member Rao Bahadur Krishnaji Lakshman Nulkar (from Bombay
Bombay Presidency
The Bombay Presidency was a province of British India. It was established in the 17th century as a trading post for the English East India Company, but later grew to encompass much of western and central India, as well as parts of post-partition Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula.At its greatest...
) and by the President of the council, the Governor-General Lord Lansdowne
Henry Petty-FitzMaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne
Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, 5th Marquess of Lansdowne, KG, GCSI, GCMG, GCIE, PC was a British politician and Irish peer who served successively as the fifth Governor General of Canada, Viceroy of India, Secretary of State for War, and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs...
.
While an 1880 case in a Bombay high court by a child-bride, Rukhmabai, renewed discussion of such a law, the death of an eleven-year-old Bengali girl, Phulomnee, due to forceful intercourse by her 35 year old husband in 1889, necessitated intervention by the British. The act was passed in 1891. It received support from Indian reformers such as Behramji Malabari
Behramji Malabari
Behramji Merwanji Malabari was an Indian poet, publicist, author, and social reformer best known for his ardent advocacy for the protection of the rights of women.- Early life :...
and women social organisations and was opposed by Hindu nationalists including Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Lokmanya Tilak –, was an Indian nationalist, teacher, social reformer and independence fighter who was the first popular leader of the Indian Independence Movement. The British colonial authorities derogatorily called the great leader "Father of the Indian unrest"...
. The law was never seriously enforced and it is argued that the real effect of the law was reassertion of Hindu patriarchal control over domestic issues as a nationalistic cause.
Passage of legislation
In 1880, Rukhmabai, a 22-year-old woman was taken to Bombay high court by her husband Dadaji as she refused to recognise their marriage rights. She was married as a child to him and argued that their marriage is not binding after 11 years of separate living. She eventually lost the case. This trial is believed to be one of the precursors for the passage of this legislation. The death of an 11-year-old BengaliBengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী...
girl Phulomnee after being brutally raped by her 35-year-old husband Hari Mohan Maitee in 1889 served as a catalyst for its legislation
While Hindu law permitted intercourse with minors, colonial law considered sex with wives only under ten as rape. Therefore, Hari Mohan Maitee was acquitted on charges of rape, but found guilty on causing death inadvertently by a rash and negligent act.
A committee consisting of influential British and Anglo-Indian statesmen established in London had submitted recommendations to the colonial government including the change in age of consent. The law was signed on 19 March 1891 by the government of Lord Lansdowne raising the age of consent for consummation
Consummate
Consummation or consummation of a marriage, in many traditions and statutes of civil or religious law, is the first act of sexual intercourse between two individuals, following their marriage to each other...
from ten to twelve years.
Support
Behramji MalabariBehramji Malabari
Behramji Merwanji Malabari was an Indian poet, publicist, author, and social reformer best known for his ardent advocacy for the protection of the rights of women.- Early life :...
, a Parsi
Parsi
Parsi or Parsee refers to a member of the larger of the two Zoroastrian communities in South Asia, the other being the Irani community....
reformer and a journalist from Bombay advocated for this legislation. He published his messages in "Notes on Infant marriage and enforced widowhood" in 1884. Although a Parsi, he claimed to be as critical of Hindu customs and domestic practices as the British.
Though women were not consulted for determining the effect of child-marriage, women in Bombay presidency including Rukhmabai and Pandita Ramabai
Pandita Ramabai
Pandita Ramabai was a social reformer and activist. She was born as Hindu, started Arya Mahila Samaj and later converted to Christianity to serve widows and helpless women of India....
made a cogent case for the ban on child-marriage in their magazines and social reform organisations. Anandi Gopal Joshi
Anandi Gopal Joshi
Anandi Gopal Joshi A was one of the two first Indian women to obtain a medical degree through training in Western medicine...
, a Maharashtrian woman who also happened to be the first female medical doctor in India advocated interference of the British Government in child marriage.
Opposition
The bill, however, provoked a powerful HinduHindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
orthodox backlash. Opposition to the bill in Maharashtra was led by Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Lokmanya Tilak –, was an Indian nationalist, teacher, social reformer and independence fighter who was the first popular leader of the Indian Independence Movement. The British colonial authorities derogatorily called the great leader "Father of the Indian unrest"...
and Poona Sarvajanik Sabha in alliance with Poona revivalists, who often invoked Hindu, Brahman
Brahman
In Hinduism, Brahman is the one supreme, universal Spirit that is the origin and support of the phenomenal universe. Brahman is sometimes referred to as the Absolute or Godhead which is the Divine Ground of all being...
and Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
glory. Tilak opposed the bill on the grounds that this was not an issue for the British but Hindus to decide. It was strongly opposed in Bengal as well and it is believed that the bill radicalised the nationalist movement in Bengal.
Orthodox Hindus argued that it violated Hindu rite "garbadhan," which obligated Hindu girls to have intercourse with her husband within sixteen days of her first period.