Panel seeks views on revisiting ‘age of consent’

With several cases of minor girls above 16 eloping with men being reported from various parts of the country, the Law Commission has sought the views of the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development on the contentious issue of “age of consent”. The age of consent in India was 16 until 2012 when the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act raised it to 18, criminalising consensual sexual activities if at least one of the parties was an adolescent. The Law Commission wrote to the ministry last month, highlighting the fact that it had received references from the Karnataka High Court and the Madhya Pradesh High Court in this regard, sources said.