Bombay HC Acquits Man In Rape Case, Cites Inconsistent Victim Behavior

The Bombay High Court recently acquitted a man accused of rape, citing inconsistencies in the woman's behaviour compared to someone of “ordinary prudence.” Justice GA Sanap of the Nagpur bench noted, “In my opinion, this conduct of the victim is not consistent with the conduct of a person of ordinary prudence placed in a similar situation.”

The case involved allegations that the man, after meeting the woman on Facebook, booked a hotel room for their encounter. Justice Sanap remarked, “A girl meeting a young boy for the first time would not go to a hotel room. Such a conduct on the part of a boy would obviously send the alarming signals to the girl.”

Further, the judge observed that a woman in distress would likely raise an alarm if in danger. “Even if, on some promise, the girl accompanies an unknown person to a room and if she is put in any trouble, then she is bound to raise hue and cry,” Justice Sanap commented.

The court also questioned the credibility of the alleged incident, citing that the hotel room was near busy areas, which made the allegations seem “unbelievable.” “In my view, the occurrence of the incident in the hotel room, therefore, appears to be unbelievable. The subsequent conduct of the victim is not consistent,” the ruling stated, as reported by Lawbeat.

The decision came after the accused appealed against a Sessions Court conviction.

Case Background

The woman claimed she connected with the man on Facebook, exchanged phone numbers, and was later taken to a hotel room. There, he allegedly asked her to change into a T-shirt and took photographs while she was changing. He reportedly threatened to share the images unless she complied with his demands for sexual intercourse. Despite following his demands, the accused allegedly shared the photos on Facebook and with her relatives, prompting the woman to file an FIR.

The court also pointed out the delay in filing the report, noting that while the photos were made public in March 2017, the complaint was not lodged until October 2017. “It is evident that the victim, after noticing the attitude of the accused, discontinued her relationship with him. It is, therefore, possible that the accused might have decided to trouble them and therefore, on repetitive publication of the photographs of the victim in social media, the parents would have lodged the report,” the court added.

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