: A man convicted of raping a widow after marrying her deceptively during the subsistence of his previous marriage has been acquitted of the offence of rape by the Delhi High Court.
A Bench headed by Justice Mukta Gupta noted that the victim had attended the man’s first wedding 24 years ago, and was, therefore, aware of his marital status.
“...from this admission of the prosecutrix [victim] that she knew the appellant [man] and his family, as supported by the testimony of the sister-in-law of the prosecutrix, the latter has not been able to prove that she did not know about the man’s marital status when she married him and established sexual relations with him. Thus, the convict is entitled to be acquitted in respect of offences punishable under Sections 420/376 (cheating and rape) of the IPC,” said Justice Gupta.
The man, Raj Kumar, was convicted of the offences of cheating, forgery and rape on July 17, 2013, and sentenced to seven years of imprisonment. A fine of ₹75,000 was also imposed on him.
The High Court also did not delve into the charges of bigamy.
“Though the ingredients of offence punishable under Section 494 (bigamy) of the IPC are established, the court need not delve into the same as the charges have not been framed,” Justice Gupta added.
Forgery charge upheld
It, however, upheld Kumar’s conviction for forgery for making a false affidavit showing himself as a bachelor and directed that he be released forthwith as he has already served four year’s jail term.
In the instant case, the woman’s husband died in 2000. She had claimed that she married Kumar in a religious procession in 2006, after which he started visiting her quite often and expressed his desire to marry her. In 2008, they got married and moved into a rented house in Uttam Nagar.
After three months, Kumar left the house one day on the pretext of submitting some documents at the officer of the Delhi Jal Board, where he claimed to have been employed.
He, however, did not return home.
Two months later, he went to meet the victim accompanied by his first wife.
The woman claimed she did not know that man was married and had two children. However, Kumar’s first wife herself deposed that the victim was their neighbour and often visited them. Even the victim’s husband was friends with Kumar.
