PUNJAB & HARYANA HIGH COURT
Nirmaljit Kaur, J.
Ashwani Bhatia
Versus
State Of Haryana
Criminal Miscellaneous No. 1674 of 2010,
Decided On : AUGUST 2, 2010
ON FACTS
Respondent/complainant is a grown up educated and professional woman--Respondent had never resisted advances made by petitioner--She is a consenting party--She willingly accompanied petitioner, wherever, he took her--She happily stayed with him in various guest houses--Moreover, she even entered into a marriage with him and continued to stay with him as his wife--Petitioner even took her to meet his family and she also attended wedding of his brothers before his marriage to complainant--It is difficult to believe that respondent/complainant was not aware of his first marriage, especially when, firm in which, he was working, was in name of petitioner and his first wife--It would be at most a breach of trust or cheating but having lived together in a relationship after performing marriage with consent of girl who is a grown up lady, cannot be termed as rape--Even if FIR is taken at its face value, offence under Sections 376 IPC is not made out--FIR under Sections 376, 494 and 506 IPC quashed. (Para 6, 11, 15 & 16)
(B) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, S.482--Indian Penal Code, 1860, Ss.494 and 198--Bigamy--Prosecution for offence against marriage--Second marriage being void, complainant does not fall under definition of Wife as expressed or defined in Section 198--Complainant not first wife offence under Section 494 IPC cannot be invoked by her.
ON FACTS
Man is guilty of an offence under Section 494 of IPC when he marries second time during lifetime of his first wife--In second marriage, woman he marries, is a party--Second marriage is not possible without her connivance--Moreover, second marriage being void, she does not fall under definition of Wife as expressed or define in Section 198--Respondent/complainant is admittedly not first wife in lieu of Section 198 and, therefore, offence under Section 494 IPC cannot be invoked by her. (Para 13 & 14)
(C) Indian Penal Code, 1860, S.376--Rape--Consent--Consent given by prosecutrix to sexual intercourse with a person with whom she is deeply in love on a promise that he would marry her on a later date, cannot be said to be given under a misconception of fact. (Para 8)
(D) Indian Penal Code, 1860, S.375--Rape--Breach of promise does not amount to an offence under Section 375 of IPC. (Para 10)
Nirmaljit Kaur, J.
1. This is a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C for quashing the FIR No. 160 dated 13.09.2009 under Sections 376, 494 and 506 IPC registered at Police Station Mahesh Nagar, District Ambala.
2. The facts, in short, as stated, are that the petitioner was a draftsman and was running a firm by the name of Ashwani Bhatia & Associates. Respondent No. 2, on the other hand, was having a diploma of architect. She had done her graduation from S.D. College, Ambala Cantt. and, thereafter, completed three years diploma in Architect from Government Polytechnic, Sirsa. She also established her own consultancy under the name and style of "Architect Den". Subsequently, the petitioner came in contact with respondent No. 2 in connection with job which was supposed to have been assigned to respondent No. 2. The petitioner continued to visit at her shop in view of the business interest. Thereafter, the respondent No. 2 closed her business establishment and started working with the petitioner. Admittedly, an intimacy developed between the petitioner and respondent No. 2 and the petitioner even invited respondent No. 2 on the marriages of his brothers Rinku and Kishan. Admittedly, the respondent No. 2 accompanied the petitioner to various guest houses at Chandigarh, Kurukshetra, Jammu and Srinagar. It is also admitted that the marriage was solemnized between the petitioner and respondent No. 2 as per Hindu Marriage Rites and Ceremonies on 05.09.2005 in the presence of all the relatives and friends. They even went to Goa for their Honeymoon. They visited Nander, Vaishno Devi and Kalahasti Chennai. Thereafter, on things having turned sour, on account of one reason or the other, the present FIR was registered by respondent No. 2 against the petitioner under Sections 376, 494 and 506 IPC.
3. Learned counsel for the petitioner, while praying for quashing of the said FIR, submitted that the petitioner was running a firm under the name of Ashwani Bhatia and associates and having office at his home which is House No. 545, Old Housing Board, Sector 13, Karnal and the respondent No. 2/complainant was admittedly working with him in his Office. Thus, it cannot be said that the respondent/complainant was not aware of his earlier marriage. Secondly, now she is running her own firm with the name and style of "Creative Arch" and she is a proprietor of this firm. She is now in professional rivalry with the petitioner. Moreover, admittedly, the petitioner and respondent No. 2 were married and, therefore, Section 376 IPC was not made out against the petitioner and Section 494 IPC can be pleaded only by the first wife. 3-A Reply on behalf of respondent No. 2/complainant has been filed, stating therein, that the petitioner had kept her in dark and only when she received threatening calls from his first wife that she came to know about his first wife. Hence, she has been cheated. Therefore, the petitioner was guilty of rape.
4. Learned counsel for the parties have been heard. The admitted facts in the present case are that:
(a) Both the petitioner and the respondent are educated. The respondent studied her graduation and thereafter three years diploma in Architect. She is an Architect by profession. The respondent/complainant started working with the petitioner in his Office/Shop after closing her own business establishment. Presently, she is running her own business under the name and style of "Architect Den."
(b) The respondent/complainant went willingly with the petitioner to various places and stayed in various guest houses and accompanied him as husband and wife to Chandigarh, Kurukshetra, Jammu and Srinagar. They developed intimacy.
(c) She was invited by the petitioner for the wedding of his brothers which she attended.
(d) The marriage between the petitioner and respondent No. 2 was solemnized on 05.09.2005 in the presence of all relatives and friends. She went for honeymoon to Goa, Nander and Vaishno Devi. She also visited at Golden Tem
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