IMPORTANT POINT
Serious offences, including rape, cannot be compromised or quashed based on the victim's wishes due to their significant societal impact.

ORDER:

G. Girish, J.

The petitioner is the accused in Crime No.36/2025 of Kakkur Police Station, Kozhikode District. The offence alleged against him are under Sections 376(1) , 376(2)(n) , 354D(2) and 450 of the Indian Penal Code ( IPC ), Sections 63(a), 64(2)(m), 78(2), 87 and 332(b) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 3(a) r/w 4(1) and 11(iv) r/w 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (for short ‘POCSO Act’)

2. The prosecution case is that on 21.11.2021 at about 07:30 p.m, the petitioner committed penetrative sexual assault on the de facto complainant, aged 17 years, at her residence, ignoring her resistance. It is alleged that while perpetrating the above crime, the petitioner gave the promise of marriage to the de facto complainant to pacify her. Thereafter, the petitioner is alleged to have indulged in sexual intercourse with the de facto complainant on three occasions in the year 2023 by inducing her to believe that he would marry her. On 15.08.2024 also, the petitioner allegedly resorted to sexual intercourse with the de facto complainant at her house with the offer of marriage. Lateron, the petitioner retracted from his promise to marry the de facto complainant, and married another girl. Thus, the petitioner is alleged to have committed the aforesaid offence.

3. The case has been registered by the Kakkur Police on the basis of the first information statement given by the de facto complainant. After the completion of the investigation, the Inspector of Police, Kakkur filed the final report before the Additional Sessions Court (for the trial of cases relating to atrocities and sexual violence towards women and children), Kozhikode.

4. In the present petition, the petitioner would contend that he is totally innocent and that he has been falsely implicated in this case. According to the petitioner, he was in love with the de facto complainant, and that she had levelled false and baseless allegations against him when he got engaged to another girl. It is further stated that the issue has been amicably settled with the de facto complainant, who had filed an affidavit stating that she has no objection in quashing the proceedings against the petitioner.

5. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor representing the State of Kerala.

6. The case on hand relates to the offence of penetrative sexual assault and rape coming under the relevant provisions of POCSO Act and IPC , committed by the petitioner upon the survivor by giving the promise of marriage. At the time when the first incident is said to have taken place on 21.11.2021, the survivor was a minor, aged 17 years only. The first information statement would reveal that the petitioner resorted to penetrative sexual assault upon her on that day, ignoring her resistance and pacifying her by saying that he would marry her. Thereafter, the petitioner is said to have resorted to sexual intercourse with the de facto complainant on three occasions in the year 2023, and finally on 15.08.2024 at her residence, after getting her consent by inducing her to believe that he would marry her. By deceiving the survivor, the petitioner is said to have married another girl, which prompted the survivor to prefer this complaint against the petitioner. As far as the first incident of 21.11.2021, the consent of the survivor is immaterial since she was a minor during that time. With regard to the subsequent incidents of the years 2023 and 2024, it is apparent from the prosecution records that, right from the very beginning, the petitioner was having no intention at all to marry the survivor and that her consent for sexual intercourse was obtained by deception. Thus, the case on hand reveals a typical incident of continuous rape and penetrative assault perpetrated upon a girl of tender age. In such a case, the law does not permit the compounding of offence even if the offender succeeded in winning over the survivor and her relatives and