New Delhi, Jan 13 (EFE). – The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court granted bail to a 26-year-old man accused of raping a 13-year-old girl, saying the relationship was the product of “love and attraction” and not “lust.”
“It seems that the alleged incident of a sexual relationship is out of the attraction between the two young people, and it is not the case that the applicant has subjected the victim to a sexual assault out of lust,” the court observed in the ruling.
According to Justice Urmila Joshi Phalke’s order, “the applicant is also of the tender age of 26 years, and out of the love affair, they come together.”
Saturday’s order, which came in response to the defendant’s bail plea, is at odds with Indian law, which sets 18 as the age women can legally consent to marriage or sexual intercourse.
The case was ed when the girl’s father filed a missing report on August 23, 2020, after his daughter went out to get some books and never returned.
The girl left the house with several valuables, when found she told authorities that she and her neighbor (the defendant) were romantically involved and that she left with promises of marriage.
The couple left the state and then moved to various places until they were finally found.
Although the court recognized that the girl’s testimony about sexual consent was irrelevant because of her age, it accepted her statement that she had voluntarily left home.
The man was arrested and booked for rape, kidnapping, and under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) on August 30, 2020, and has been in jail ever since.
Justice Joshi-Phalke observed in the sentence that “the victim is 13 years of age, and her consent is not relevant. She also ed the company of the applicant (accused) and itted her love relationship with the applicant in her statement.”
The judge said since there had been no progress in the case despite the charge sheet being filed in 2020, the petitioner should be released on bail fixed at Rs 25,000 (about 3,000 dollars).
The POCSO Act has been in force in India since 2012. It provides a legal framework to protect children from sexual assault, sexual harassment, and pornography while safeguarding the child during the judicial process. EFE
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