Delhi court grants bail to man accused of having sex under false promise of marriage

New Delhi, Sep 20 (PTI) A Delhi court has granted bail to a man accused of having sexual intercourse on the false pretext of marriage, saying the complainant and her partner were “Gen-Z consenting adults, who engaged in an active sexual relationship during the currency of their relationship lasting over three-and-a-half years”.

Additional sessions judge Hargurvarinder Singh Jaggi was hearing a case against the man who was booked under Section 69 (sexual intercourse by employing deceitful means etc.) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

In an order dated September 19, the court noted the submissions of the accused's counsel, Kushal Kumar, that the offence was not made out, as both of them dated each other for almost four years, where they had consensual sex as equal partners and that "their relationship hit a cul-de-sac" when the complainant asked his client, a Sikh, to convert to Islam if they wanted to get married.

“It is nobody's case that the complainant and accused were in a situationship. Both of them are Gen-Z consenting adults, who engaged in an active sexual relationship during the currency of their relationship (dating phase) lasting over three-and-a-half years," the court said, noting the evidence before it.

According to the Cambridge dictionary, a situationship is "a romantic relationship between two people who do not yet consider themselves as a couple but who have more than friendship”.

The court said, according to the allegations, the accused developed physical intimacy with the woman and repeatedly had sexual intercourse with her in hotel rooms and that he had deceived the complainant continuously since December 2021.

It said, “The prolonged period of three-and-a-half years during which sexual relations continued unabatedly between the parties is sufficient to conclude that there never was an element of pressure, force or deceit in the relationship. “From the case diary and the documents produced by the investigating officer during the course of the hearing, it was observed from the photographs of the accused and the complainant that they shared bonhomie and an intimate relationship.” It cited a 2019 verdict of the Supreme Court, which held that a consensual long-term relationship and a subsequent breach of a marriage promise do not amount to rape unless the promise was false from the outset and induced consent.

Continuing its order, the court said, “The religious diversity as the pivot of the complainant's relationship with the accused lost its balance at the anvil of their respective religion, as it appears from the FIR that conversion of religion became a sore point between the two.

“It is observed that during the currency of their long-term consensual relationship, the complainant and the accused were well aware of the obstacles of inter-religion marriage, (between) Islam and Sikhism.” It said that according to the FIR, even after arguments arose regarding marriage, the complainant continued to visit, reside, proceed on vacations, and even go to hotel rooms with the accused, indicating "ongoing consent”.

Granting the man relief, the court said the prosecution's concerns, including the accused tampering with evidence or being at flight risk, could be addressed by imposing stringent bail conditions. PTI MNR ARI