Man should not be punished for having consensual sex with girl below 18: Delhi Court

A man having consensual sex with a minor girl aged below 18, can't be booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, a court in Delhi said on Monday.

The court's observation resulted in a 22-year-old man from West Bengal being released from custody. He had been earlier accused of abducting and raping a 15-year-old girl whom he married later.

According to the evidence presented in court, the couple married voluntarily with consent and no case was made out for kidnapping or compelling the woman to marry.

"I'm afraid if that interpretation is allowed, it would mean that the human body of every individual under 18 years is the property of the state and no individual below 18 years can be allowed to have pleasures associated with one's body," the court said while quashing a plea made by the police and the Delhi Commission for Women.

Both had said that the POCSO Act prohibited minor girls from having sex.

The judge, however, asked the concerned authorities to spread awareness about problems arising out of unsafe sex and early marriage.