Supreme Court Rape Case: On Thursday, the apex court made an important comment saying that it is difficult to believe that a married woman was instigated to have physical relations by false promise of marriage. On this basis, the Supreme Court quashed a case registered on charges of rape under the pretext of marriage.
The bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuiyan made it clear in its decision that consensual physical relationship merely with the promise of marriage cannot be considered as rape in all circumstances. The Court reiterated that the offense under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code is made out only when it is proved that the accused had obtained consent only for the purpose of sexual intercourse with the intention of not marrying from the beginning.
In this case, the Supreme Court overturned the decision of Chhattisgarh High Court. The High Court had earlier refused to quash the rape case registered against the accused lawyer. Justice Nagarathna said in the judgment that the complainant woman was legally married during the entire period of the alleged relationship, as her divorce case was pending in the court.
The bench also said that the complainant herself is a lawyer and could not have been unaware of this position of law. Both parties were aware of the marital status of the woman, hence the allegation of rape based on promise of marriage is not sustainable.
It is noteworthy that the complainant is a 33-year-old lawyer, mother of a child. She had alleged that the relationship lasted from September 2022 to January 2025, during which pregnancy and forced abortion occurred. However, considering all the facts in the Supreme Court Rape Case, the apex court canceled the case filed against the accused lawyer.