Amicus counters government stand, says it violates right to autonomy

Senior advocate Indira Jaising argued in Supreme Court against the government's stance on the age of consent, asserting that criminalizing consensual sexual activity between 16-18 year olds violates their autonomy. She highlighted that the age of consent remained static at 16 for 80 years without rational justification for its increase. Jaising proposed an exception for 'close in age', non-abusive consensual relationships, citing early puberty and sexual awareness among adolescents.