New Delhi, May 27 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday quashed rape and allied charges against a 25-year-old Agriculture student, observing that a consensual relationship that later turns sour or distant cannot be a valid basis for initiating criminal proceedings under rape laws.
A division bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma allowed the appeal filed by Amol Bhagwan Nehul, setting aside a Bombay High Court order that had refused to quash an FIR registered under Sections 376, (rape) 376(2) (n), 377, 504 (threat) and 506 of the Indian Penal Code.
The complainant, a woman who was previously married and residing with her child, alleged that the appellant had engaged in sexual relations with her on the false promise of marriage. She claimed that he coerced her into repeated sexual encounters between 2022 and 2023 at her residence, restaurants and hotels.