Break-up of consensual relation can’t result in rape case against man: Supreme Court
Court quashes rape FIR, says failed relationships cannot be criminalised without clear evidence of false promise or coercion
The Supreme Court has held that the mere break-up of a consensual relationship between two adults cannot be treated as a criminal offence leading to rape charges against the man. A Bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan emphasized that a relationship cannot be retrospectively labeled as rape simply because it ended in disagreement or disappointment, stressing that false promise of marriage allegations must be supported by clear, credible evidence.
The judgment came while quashing an FIR filed by a woman from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar who accused her lawyer of repeatedly raping her under a false promise of marriage. The Court found that the relationship was voluntary and mutual over three years, without any claims of coercion during that period. It noted that consent given out of mutual affection cannot be criminalised just because a marital promise remains unfulfilled.
The Bench warned that trivialising the offence of rape by conflating it with failed relationships could lead to grave injustice and an abuse of the legal process. It reiterated that, absent evidence of deceit from the outset or vitiated consent, adults in ongoing consensual relationships cannot retroactively claim rape simply because of a subsequent break-up.