06/12/2020
THE DELHI High Court has quashed a r**e case against a man after the complainant said the FIR was lodged 'out of anger' following an altercation.
'Since the prosecutrix has made a wrong statement which culminated into the present FIR, therefore she is liable to be prosecuted under the law. However, she seeks unconditional apology and submits that she is a married woman having two children and her matrimonial life will be destroyed if the present case is sent for trial,' said Justice Suresh Kumar Kait in the order dated December 4, while accepting her apology.
Noting that though the Supreme Court has ruled that the FIR in a r**e case should not be quashed as it is a heinous offence, the court said that when the complainant herself has taken the initiative and stated that she made the complaint due to 'some misunderstanding', there will be no purpose in continuing with the trial as ultimately the result will be acquittal in favour of the accused but substantial public time will be wasted.
This court is conscious about the dictum of the Supreme Court in terms of seriousness of the case, however, keeping in view the settlement arrived between the parties, this court is inclined to quash the present FIR as no useful purpose would be served in prosecuting the petitioner any further,' it said.
It also noted that the man against whom the complaint was made 'is a well-educated person' and holds various educational degrees including MBA and CS-Executive. He is currently preparing for CS-Professional and UPSC examinations, and continuation of the proceedings will affect his prospects in clearing examinations, it said further.
The r**e case was registered on August 10 at a Southwest district police station. However, a compromise was reached soon and the accused was granted bail by the trial court on August 27 after the complainant and her husband did not object to the grant of bail. The court had also noted at the time that the woman and the accused knew each other.
