Kolkata, April 27 (). The Calcutta High Court, in a 14-year-old case, has ruled that consensual physical relations between two adults with a true promise of marriage, even if that promise is not fulfilled later, cannot amount to rape.
Justice Shampa Dutta (Paul) said that in many cases rape allegations are leveled due to complications in the relationship.
Dankuni of Hooghly district of West Bengal had filed the case in 2009. The family members had fixed the marriage of the boy and the girl. After this both started meeting often. During this, physical relations also took place between them.
In the meanwhile, the boy shifted to Goa for professional reasons where he married another girl. After this, the girl and her family members had filed a case of rape against the boy with whom his relationship was fixed by the family members on the pretext of marriage.
The police registered a case under section 376 of the Indian Penal Code against the entire family of the boy. The boy’s father was also arrested. The boy appealed to the Calcutta High Court in 2009 challenging the FIR.
The boy’s lawyer argued in the court that since both the boy and the girl were adults and had consent, it could not be termed as rape. He said that the family cannot be made an accused under Section 376 of the IPC for a consensual physical relationship.
The counsel for the other side said that the entire family was involved in this conspiracy and they together cheated the girl.
After hearing both the sides, Justice Datta (Paul) said that the complaint of rape was baseless. He rejected the allegations leveled against the boy’s family and said that consensual physical relations between two adults cannot be termed as rape.
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