The main legal point established in the judgment is the reliance on credible victim testimony and medical evidence to establish the appellant's guilt in a case of rape.

Abhay M. Thipsay, J.

This appeal is directed against the judgment and order dated 14th August 2013 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Greater Bombay, convicting the appellant of an offence punishable under Section 376 and Section 506 (Part I) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The learned Additional Sessions Judge sentenced the appellant to suffer Rigorous Imprisonment for 10 years and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/- with respect to the offence punishable under Section 376 of the IPC, and to suffer Rigorous Imprisonment for 1 year and to pay a fine of Rs.2,000/- with respect to the offence punishable under Section 506 (Part I) of the IPC. Being aggrieved by his conviction and the sentences imposed upon him, the appellant has approached this court by filing the present appeal.

2. I have heard Shri K.M. Mhatre, the learned counsel for the appellant. I have heard Shri A.R. Patil, the learned APP for the State. I have gone through the entire evidence adduced during the trial. I have gone through the impugned judgment.

3. The appellant is alleged to have raped the younger sister of his wife. The prosecution case, in brief, is that, the sister of the prosecutrix got married to the appellant on 5th October 2010. That, as the appellant had no place to stay, he started residing with his wife in the house of his in laws. While staying there, the appellant used to wake the victim up in the night, take her to gallery, and used to have sexual intercourse with her. According to the victim, she never consented for such an act, but the appellant would forcibly have intercourse with her. The victim did not disclose the incidents to any of her family members as she was scared of the appellant and as the appellant had threatened to the victim that he would divorce her sister.

After a few months, the appellant and the sister of the victim went to reside at Govandi. The mother of the victim went to a Darga at Gujarat. The victim's father once went to their village for some work. The mother of the victim, had, in that situation, instructed the victim to go to her sister's house, i.e. the house of the appellant and the victim did accordingly. The brother of the victim had also accompanied her. While the victim was staying with the appellant, in the house of the appellant, the appellant again raped her on a number of occasions. The victim had some quarrel with her sister, and the sister of the victim had asked her to leave the house. Apparently, the victim was searching for a job and had found some work in a house at Byculla. The victim then started residing in the house of her employer. However, once the victim's brother telephoned her and called her to her sister's house, i.e., the appellant's house. The victim refused, but the sister telephoned at the place where the victim was working, and the employer of the victim then asked her to go back. This is how the victim was forced to go back to her sister's house. The victim, however, did not like to stay there and went back to her employer's house at Byculla. The sister of the victim, however, called the victim back by telling that Noor-son of victim's sister-was not well. The victim went to her sister's house, and found that a false reason had been given by her sister to call her back. The victim continued to stay with her sister, as she had already lost her job. With the acquaintance of one Rubina, who was doing a course of beauty parlour, the victim started going to beauty parlour. She came in contact with a social worker-Bhavna Kamble (PW3). The victim told Bhavna that she wanted to stay in hostel, where after, Bhavna took her to Children's Home. The victim narrated what had happened to her, to one Sunita Madam, who was a Probation Officer attached to the Children's Home. Sunita Madam then called the police, enquiries were made, and a case of offence punishable under Section 376 of the IPC and Section 506 (Part I) of the IPC was registered. The appellant came to be arrested. He was prosecute