Bombay HC: No Rape If Consent Was Not Based on False Promise of Marriage
In a crucial ruling, the Bombay High Court quashed an FIR for rape based on a false promise of marriage, stating that the woman had the intelligence to understand the morality of the act and that her consent was not obtained through deception.
Case Background
The court was hearing an appeal by the accused, who sought to quash an FIR and chargesheet under Section 376(2)(n) of the IPC, along with provisions of the SC/ST Act. The prosecution claimed that the accused had sex with the woman against her will by falsely promising to marry her.
However, a bench comprising Justice Vinay Joshi and Justice Vrushali V. Joshi noted that:
- The victim was an adult and an engineering student.
- She was in a long-term relationship with the accused.
- Both families had discussed marriage in the initial years.
- The accused’s parents even attempted to settle the marriage.
Court’s Key Observations
The court referred to a Supreme Court judgment in Pramod Suryabhan Pawar vs State of Maharashtra (2019) and stated that:
- Consent under Section 375 IPC requires active and reasoned deliberation.
- For a rape charge based on a false promise of marriage, it must be proven that:
- The promise was false from the start.
- The accused never intended to marry.
- In this case, both partners willingly engaged in a relationship for years and the accused showed genuine intent to marry.
Why the Court Quashed the FIR
The court found that:
- The couple had been in a relationship for five years.
- They traveled together, visited each other’s homes, and regularly met.
- The accused had informed his family about his desire to marry.
- There was no evidence that he had misled the victim into a relationship under false pretenses.
Given these facts, the court ruled that the relationship was consensual and that the rape allegation could not be sustained. The FIR and chargesheet were quashed.
This ruling reinforces the legal position that a false promise of marriage must be deliberate and deceptive to constitute rape under Indian law.
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