The Allahabad High Court acquitted a man who was accused of raping a woman under the pretext of marriage. The court emphasized that while the law on sexual offences rightly focuses on protecting the dignity and honor of women, it doesn’t mean that the male partner is always at fault. The burden of proof in such cases lies on both the complainant and the accused.
The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the victim in 2019, alleging that the accused had a sexual relationship with her on the promise of marriage but later refused to marry her. She also claimed that he had made derogatory remarks about her caste. After investigation, the accused was charge-sheeted in 2020.
In the trial, the accused argued that the relationship was consensual and that he had declined to marry the woman after learning that she did not belong to the ‘Yadav’ caste as she had claimed.
The court found that the complainant had been previously married and had not disclosed this fact. It noted that she had hidden her marital status and caste. Furthermore, the court observed that the complainant and the accused had maintained a physical relationship for five years without objection and had visited various hotels and lodges together.
The high court upheld the acquittal given by the trial court, stating that the victim’s claims of sexual harassment and rape could not be accepted in light of the evidence presented.
