The court may quash criminal proceedings if the victim marries the accused, emphasizing the importance of preserving family harmony and avoiding further trauma.

ORDER

The accused in S.C. No.741/2021 on the files of the Fast Track Special Court, Haripad, has filed this petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 , to quash the proceedings against him in the said case. The offences alleged against him are under Sections 450 , 376(1) , 354(D)(1)(ii) , 363 and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and Section 3 (a) read with Section 4 (1) , 5(j)(ii) r/w 6 , 11(iv) r/w 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 , (in short, ‘POCSO Act’) and Section 84 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 . The prosecution case is that on 18.01.2021, at about 00:50 hrs., the petitioner criminally trespassed to the residence of the de facto complainant and indulged in penetrative sexual assault leading to the pregnancy of the de facto complainant, and thereafter kidnapped the de facto complainant from the lawful custody of her parents on 19.06.2021 and again indulged in penetrative sexual assault upon her. It is further alleged that the clothes worn by the petitioner, as well as the mobile phone used by him were destroyed by the petitioner, and thus caused destruction of evidence.

2. In the present petition, the petitioner would contend that all the allegations levelled against him are false, and there was no offence as alleged by the prosecution committed by him. According to the petitioner, he and the de facto complainant were in love, and now they have married on 23.09.2022 and started leading a peaceful family life. For the above reason, the petitioner seeks to terminate the prosecution proceedings against him.

3. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, the learned counsel for the second respondent and the learned Public Prosecutor representing the State of Kerala.

4. It is pointed out by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the marriage between the petitioner and the de facto complainant had already been conducted on 23.09.2022, and that they are now leading a peaceful family life along with the child born in that wedlock. Annexure-3 marriage certificate issued by the Muslim Jama Ath Kaduvinal and Annexure-4 receipt issued by the Vallikunnam Grama Panchayat in connection with the application for registration of marriage, are relied on by the learned counsel for the petitioner in support of the above contention. The de facto complainant has also filed affidavit stating that the termination of the prosecution proceedings against the petitioner is highly necessary for preserving the peaceful and happy family life of the de facto complainant and the petitioner.

5. The learned public prosecutor, upon instructions, submitted that the de facto complainant had given statement to the Investigating Officer also upon the same terms as that of the affidavit filed before this Court by her.

6. The issue whether a crime of aggravated penetrative sexual assault registered against an offender under the provisions of the POCSO Act could be quashed taking note of the marriage of the victim with the accused, still remains as a delicate and debatable subject matter among judicial circles. A learned Single Judge of this Court had the occasion to deal with two such similar issues in Crl.M.C.Nos.6880/2022 & 7427/2024. Relying on various judicial precedents of several High Courts as well as this Court on the point, the learned Single Judge culled out seven aspects of significance to be looked into in cases of this nature. Paragraph No.26 of the common order rendered by the learned Single Judge in Xxxx v. State of Kerala [ 2025 KHC 471 ] is extracted hereunder:

The following aspects assume significance i