In the context of Indian history, the Rakhmabai case of 1884 revolved around 1. women's right to gain education 2. age of consent 3. restitution of conjugal rights Select the correct answer using the code given below:
A1 and 2 only
B2 and 3 only
C1 and 3 only
D1, 2 and 3
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. 2 and 3 only
Answer: B. The Rakhmabai case of 1884 turned on AGE OF CONSENT and RESTITUTION OF CONJUGAL RIGHTS.
The RAKHMABAI CASE (1884 to 1888) was a celebrated colonial-era legal dispute that became a focal point of debate over women's rights, child marriage, and the reform of Hindu personal law in late 19th century India.
THE FACTS: Rakhmabai had been married as an 11-year-old child to Dadaji Bhikaji in 1875 in Bombay. After reaching adulthood, she REFUSED TO COHABIT WITH HER HUSBAND. Her stepfather Sakharam Arjun, a noted physician and progressive intellectual, supported her. Dadaji approached the Bombay High Court seeking RESTITUTION OF CONJUGAL RIGHTS, an English legal doctrine imported into India that required a wife to resume cohabitation with her husband.
KEY ISSUES:
1. AGE OF CONSENT: Rakhmabai had been married as a child without informed consent. The case became a forceful example for raising the legal age of consent and curbing child marriage. It directly contributed to the political pressure that culminated in the AGE OF CONSENT ACT, 1891 (which raised the age of consent for sexual intercourse for girls from 10 to 12 years).
2. RESTITUTION OF CONJUGAL RIGHTS: the colonial court ordered Rakhmabai to return to her husband. She publicly REFUSED, declaring that she would rather go to prison than comply. The case raised fundamental questions about the imposition of an English common-law remedy on Hindu marriage and women's autonomy. Eventually a financial settlement was reached in 1888.
Statement 2 (AGE OF CONSENT): CORRECT, directly linked to the case.
Statement 3 (RESTITUTION OF CONJUGAL RIGHTS): CORRECT, this is the technical legal question on which the case was litigated.
Statement 1 (RIGHT TO EDUCATION) is WRONG. The case did NOT centre on women's right to education. Rakhmabai herself later went on to become ONE OF THE FIRST INDIAN WOMEN DOCTORS (qualifying in medicine from London) and was an early model of female professional achievement, but the case itself did not raise the right to education as a legal question.
So 2 and 3 are the issues the case turned on; 1 is incorrect.
Source: NCERT Class 12 Themes in Indian History Part III; Tanika Sarkar 'Hindu Wife, Hindu Nation'; Padma Anagol 'The Emergence of Feminism in India 1850-1920'; Antoinette Burton's writing on Rakhmabai.
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