On March 19, 1891, the Age of Consent Act was enacted to raise the age of consent for sexual intercourse for women from 10 to 12. This Act amended the Indian Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure, Section 375, 1882, to raise the age and recognise marital rape.
The breach of this Act was punishable by subjection of the offender to criminal prosecution for having committed rape.
The Bill was opposed by some as interfering with the orthodox Hindu code, but was passed with the support of the Viceroy, Lord Lansdowne. However, the Act was criticised as timid for merely raising the statutory age for rape of women to 12 and was never seriously enforced.
The formulation of the Act was largely a reaction to the horrifying death of a 10-year-old girl in Bengal from marital rape. In 1889, Phulmoni Dasi died after she was raped by her 35-year-old husband Hari Mohan Maitee, who was sentenced to 12 months of hard labour as Phulmoni was of legal age and married.
