Allahabad High Court has clarified in an important decision that mere refusal to marry does not automatically constitute the crime of rape. According to the court, the crime will be considered only when it is proved that physical relations were established with the consent of the woman by making a false promise of marriage from the very beginning.
It is necessary to prove wrong intention from the beginning
The High Court said that the allegation of having physical relations by giving false promise of marriage will stand only when it is clearly proved that the intention of the accused was to cheat from the very beginning. No one can be held guilty merely on the basis of allegations.
Consensual relations are not rape
Analyzing the facts of the case, the court said that the victim was an adult and had consensual physical relations twice in a period of about four months. In such circumstances, raising allegations of rape in case of subsequent refusal to marry cannot be legally justified.
No concrete allegations of SC-ST Act in FIR
The court also said that in the FIR registered, there is no clear mention of any specific offense under the SC-ST Act, nor has any concrete allegation related to threatening been made. In such a situation, prosecuting the case would be an abuse of the judicial process.
order to quash criminal proceedings
The High Court accepted the petition of accused Abhinash Sharma alias Avinash Sharma and canceled the criminal proceedings going on against him. The court accepted that there is no legal basis to continue the trial in the case.
FIR was registered in Azamgarh police station
An FIR was registered against the petitioner in Bilariaganj police station of Azamgarh district for rape by false promise of marriage and under SC-ST Act, which has now been canceled by the High Court.
defense arguments
Advocate Prashant Singh Rinku, on behalf of the petitioner, argued in the court that even if the allegations made against the accused are accepted as true, no punishable offense is made out. He said that the victim is an adult and the relationship was consensual.
Public Prosecutor’s Side
The government lawyer argued before the court that having a physical relationship with a false promise of marriage is a serious crime and strict action should be taken in such cases.
Reference to Supreme Court precedents
After hearing the arguments of both the parties, the High Court expressed confidence in the previous decisions of the Supreme Court and said that the allegation of rape will be considered only when it is proved beyond doubt.
It does not amount to rape if there is a dispute later.
The court made it clear that if physical relations are consensual and later due to mutual differences or discord an allegation of rape is made, then it cannot be considered a criminal offence.
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