The Indian government has opposed petitions in the top court that seek criminalisation of marital rape, saying it would be "excessively harsh". The federal home ministry told the Supreme Court that "a man does not have a fundamental right" to force sex on his wife, but there were enough laws to protect married women against sexual violence.

India's government has asked the country's top court not to toughen criminal penalties against marital rape during an ongoing case brought by campaigners seeking to outlaw it.

The Centre opposes the criminalisation of marital rape, emphasizing the complexity of marital relationships and urging Parliament to decide on the matter. The government stresses protecting women's dignity while noting that consent violations within marriage have different penal consequences than those outside it.

The government on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that it sees no necessity to criminalize marital rape, arguing that there are already "suitably designed punitive measures" in place. The Centre contended that the issue is primarily “social rather than legal”,

The government acknowledged that while a husband has no “fundamental right” to violate his wife’s consent, invoking the full force of the law as applied to rape cases involving strangers could destabilise the matrimonial framework.