Govt.calls an all-party meet on March 18 to bring anti-rape law before March 22

12 Mar 2013 Evaluate

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath has announced that an all-party meet has been called on March 18 to discuss on the anti-rape Bill. The fresh Bill will replace the ordinance on crimes against women promulgated last month.

The Cabinet has deferred the anti-rape Bill due to lack of unanimity. The proposal will replace the provision in the ordinance which has subscribed life imprisonment as the maximum punishment for those in authority committing rape. The fresh bill, which will also replace the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2012 introduced in the Lok Sabha in December last year. The bill retains the provision that if rape leads to death of the victim or leaves her in a vegetative state, it can attract death penalty.

Despite the differences, Law Minister Ashwani Kumar said that the Bill will be discussed on Friday and will be passed in the Budget Session of Parliament. Consensus has eluded the government specifically on clauses relating to the use of the term 'rape', voyeurism, and reducing the age of consent from 18 to 16 years.

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