The Karnataka High Court granted an interim stay on a suit brought by a lady alleging, among other things, rape by her husband, with whom she had only lived for one day. “If this cannot be a case where the complainant has abused the process of law, prima facie, there cannot be a better illustration,” the High Court stated while staying the criminal proceedings against the husband and his family members.
The husband and his family members had petitioned the High Court to challenge the wife’s complaint and the registration of the case under Sections 376(2)(j), 342, 323, 504, and 506 r/w Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
They worked together at an MNC motorcycle store in Bengaluru. They courted each other for four years before marrying at a temple on January 27, 2023, and having their marriage recorded with the Registrar of Marriages in Malleshwaram. The wife’s birthday was celebrated on the same day. The husband reportedly learned of the wife’s previous affair and her communication with the other person via WhatsApp.
A disagreement the next day resulted in the wife leaving the marital home on January 29. “It is claimed that she threatened to divorce the first petitioner.” “From January 29, 2023, to March 1, 2023, there was no interaction between the two for nearly 32 days, and after 32 days, the complainant filed a complaint with the jurisdictional police alleging the afore-mentioned offenses,” the HC said.
According to the wife’s police report, she “did not know what happened to her on the date of marriage.” She claims she was drunk.
She also claims that the petitioners mistreated her after discovering her previous affair. According to the lawsuit, even though she was married, the alleged sexual act between the two after marriage amounted to rape because of the aforementioned conditions.”
“The complainant, having fallen in love, being in a relationship for a few years, marries the first petitioner, lives for a few days, and then alleges rape,” the HC remarked while hearing the husband’s and his family members’ appeal. It does not stop with the first petitioner; all members of the first petitioner’s family who were present at the marriage are entangled in the web of wrongdoing.”
“Therefore, there shall be an interim order of stay of investigation and further proceedings in Crime No. 23 of 2023 qua the petitioners, until the disposal of the petition,” the HC ruled in granting the interim stay. As a result, the application stands.”
