Allahabad HC grants bail to rape accused stating that ‘victim herself invited trouble’

Allahabad High Court grants bail to rape accused, citing victim's role in inviting trouble, sparking controversy.

Allahabad High Court last month granted bail to a rape accused noting that the victim herself invited trouble and was also responsible for the same.

The victim, a master’s student, in her FIR, had stated that she had gone to a bar with her friends in last September where they all drank alcohol due to which she became intoxicated and needed support. In the police statement, she said that she had agreed to go to the house of the accused to rest.

She alleged, the accused touched her inappropriately on the way and instead of his house in Noida, he took her to his relative’s home in Gurgaon and raped her twice. She further alleged that the accused touched her inappropriately on the way.

The accused, in his bail application, argued that considering the facts of the case as disclosed by the victim, it is not a case of rape but may be a case of consensual relationship between the parties concerned. The accused’s counsel also said that his client has been languishing in jail since December 2024 and has no criminal history. Hence, if he is released on bail, he will not misuse the liberty of bail and will cooperate in the early disposal of the case.

The Bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar Singh, in his order of March 11, observed that she was competent enough to understand the ‘morality and significance’ of her act as disclosed

“This Court is of the view that even if the allegation of the victim is accepted as true, then it can also be concluded that she herself invited trouble and was also responsible for the same. Similar stand has been taken by the victim in her statement. In her medical examination, her hymen was found torn, but doctor did not give any opinion about the sexual assault,” the court noted while allowing bail to the accused.