Rape is an accusation that is hard to be proved, and even harder to be defended by the accused party. A rape allegation gives a disastrous turn to the life of the accused, excluding them socially. Rape is a menace, and many women do not speak about to incidence due to infamy. But point of consideration is that whether all rape cases true or they are being filed with false claims to gain some undue advantage or to take revenge?
Lacunas of Indian Rape Laws
No provision is there related to rape with men under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), this is the biggest lacuna of rape laws in India. There have been multiple instances where men have been raped, harassed, molested, or trapped under false rape charges.
The irony is that dignity and honour of a man is never discussed and what we focus on is always about a woman. There are strict criminal laws in India that aim to protect and safeguard a woman, which have been rampantly being misused by them for various reasons. In this article, we will discuss one such case wherein the Court considered that the prosecutrix has falsely implicated four men for gang raping her.
The State v. Satish & Ors.: Delhi Court
Recently, a Delhi Court in the State v. Satish & Ors. stated that cases of falsely accusing innocent persons of rape and gang rape are at rise in India, this is leading to injustice with genuine victims.
The Court noted that the prosecutrix had falsely accused the men of her abduction and rape. She had filed a false case against them and concealed the fact that she had married Satish (one of the accused) at the Arya Samaj temple in 2012 and later accused him and his three relatives of gang raping her.
In 2016, charges were framed against four men, Satish, Yogesh Gupta, Kuldeep, and Satbir. All pleaded not guilty and claimed trial, but Satbir expired during the trial. The court observed that the prosecutrix’s version of her abduction and rape was false and showed her motive in filing the false complaint.
The Judge had acquitted three men in the impugned case, by observing that the prosecutrix’s conduct was unnatural and belied her story. The Court while awarding sentence to the prosecutrix added that this would serve as a deterrent to other complainants. In the instant matter, all the accused persons were falsely accused of gang rape by the prosecutrix. This not only led to social stigma to the falsely accused men but also caused them mental trauma.
Social stigma and trauma: Court’s observations
While passing the order, the Delhi Court made a significant observation wherein it stated that ‘honour is still dearer than life in India, and once lost, it is never fully restored’. The Court also pointed out that the social stigma is grave if the offence complained of is rape.
Due to false accusation of rape charges, all the accused suffered a grave social stigma and trauma of facing a criminal case for a period of eight long years. The accused were behind the bars and later they were released on bail. The Court further observed that the incalculable suffering including loss of social esteem, mental trauma and financial loss suffered by the accused can be well imagined.
Court awarded sentence to woman
Additional Sessions Judge Jagmohan Singh of the Delhi Court emphasized the need for a “heavy hand” to keep a check over false rape cases and maintain justice. The Court came heavily on the woman who has falsely accused men of raping her. The Court has sentenced her for deliberately giving false evidence on oath in a rape case. The prosecutrix was sentenced to two months of simple imprisonment by the Court. The maximum sentence provided for u/s 344 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) is three months. Section 344 of the CrPC deals with ‘Summary procedure for trial for giving false evidence’. The Court considered the mitigating circumstances of the convict while awarding punishment to the woman.
The prosecutrix filed an application seeking suspension of sentence until the filing of an appeal against the sentencing order. Based on the said application, the court released her on bail under Section 389 CrPC subject to furnishing personal bonds and surety bonds of Rs. 10,000 each for 30 days.
Conclusion
There is a wave of the disrespectful trend of registering false rape accusations against a man by a woman. The rape laws that are enacted for the protection of women have been misused for undue gain and advantages. Indeed, strict action by the Courts to punish women for falsely accusing men of rape charges will set a benchmark against false cases.
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