CRIMINAL LAW ROUNDUP: A quick recap of the top criminal cases from February 2025
Top criminal cases on quashing of proceedings, arrest, bail, acquittal, and more.
Consensual Relationship
‘Victim had sufficient knowledge, full capacity to know import of her actions’; Bombay HC grants bail to 24-year-old accused of raping his then 14-year-old girlfriend
“The victim has left her parents’ house without informing the parents and stayed with the accused for 3 days and 3 nights, she also confessed that she was in love with the accused and travelled along with him to different places and had a consensual encounter.”
‘Not a sexual predator but a young person involved in consensual relationship’; Bombay HC grants bail to 22-year-old man accused of raping his 16-year-old girlfriend
“Both the parties were of the age to have a reasonable understanding of the import of their conduct, and despite that, had engaged in the said act over a substantial period of time.”
Court must be mindful of the danger of attributing criminal intent to an otherwise disturbed civil relationship: SC
The Court further observed that there is a worrying trend that consensual relationships going on for prolonged period, upon turning sour, have been sought to be criminalised by invoking criminal jurisprudence.
‘For 31 years, complainant willingly, knowingly participated in sexual relationship’; Bombay HC quashes FIR registered u/S 376 IPC against 73-year-old man
The complainant was adult enough to know that the law forbids a second marriage and there was no allegation in the complaint that applicant promised to divorce his first wife and then marry her.
‘Hospitals can’t insist on police complaint as condition to provide medical care’: Bombay HC
“Grant of medical aid to any person is directly concomitant with the guarantees of Article 21 of the Constitution.”
‘A relationship consensual at the beginning may not remain so all time’; Supreme Court refuses to quash rape case
The Supreme Court directed masking of the complainant’s identity in the Court records and future proceedings and her to be referred as ‘Miss X’.
[Bumble Relationship] | Delhi Court grants bail to a man accused of rape under section 376 IPC
While considering the complexities introduced by dating apps like Bumble, the court balanced the need for bail with the imperative of upholding the integrity of the trial process.
Fact of consensual relationship should be taken into consideration while granting bail in POCSO cases: Allahabad HC
“POCSO was formulated to protect children under the age of 18 years from sexual exploitation. Nowadays often it has become a tool for their exploitation”
Calcutta High Court quashes conviction under POCSO Act; Calls for Legal Reform and safeguarding rights of adolescents in consensual relationships
Calcutta High Court noted the rising trend of consensual sexual relationships among adolescents and recognized the need to address such cases within the legal framework.
Madras High Court directs DGP to identify cases involving consensual relationship amongst pending POCSO cases; Discontinues two-finger test and potency test
If consensual relationship cases are segregated from the pending cases, it will be easy to deal with them and in appropriate cases, the Court can also exercise its jurisdiction and quash the proceedings, if the proceedings are ultimately going to be against the interest and future of the children involved in those cases and it is found to be an abuse of process of Court.
Punjab & Haryana High Court | Man does not have a right/liberty to sexually exploit the fiancée without her consent; anticipatory bail denied
Punjab & Haryana High Court: While denying for the grant of anticipatory bail for which the instant petition is preferred
Delhi High Court’s ruling that led to Supreme Court recognizing unmarried women’s right to a safe abortion
Delhi High Court: A Division Bench of Sathish Chandra Sharma, CJ and Subramonium Prasad, J refused termination of pregnancy to an unmarried
No straitjacket formula for determining whether the consent was given under a misconception of fact or not; Tis Hazari Court grants anticipatory bail
Tis Hazari Court, Delhi: While deciding a bail application, Kamini Lau, J. granted anticipatory in a case where the complainant-girl was a
Del HC | Can Internal Complaints Committee make comments on personal conduct of parties? Read what HC says about ‘Moral Policing’ and ‘Consensual Relationships’
Delhi High Court: Pratibha M. Singh, J., observed that: Complaints of sexual harassment are initially filed with enormous reluctance. The power of
Del HC | Can continuing with an intimate relationship involving sexual activity over a significant period of time, be construed as involuntary? Court answers
Delhi High Court: Vibhu Bakhru, J., observed that it is difficult to accept that continuing with an intimate relationship, which also involves engaging
Utt HC | Individuals of same sex, living together are not competent to enter the wedlock, still they have the right to live together outside the wedlock; Live-in relationship recognised by legislature
Uttaranchal High Court: Sharad Kumar Sharma, J., while addressing a habeas corpus petition observed that, The intimacy of marriage, including the choice of