Man booked over 'rape' for ignoring girlfriend after pregnancy, gets bail from Bombay HC

Mumbai: The Bombay high court, here on Monday granted bail to a rape accused after establishing that he had a consensual relation with the victim and that he was booked for rape and cheating after he ignored the latter’s pregnancy. The bail has been granted to the accused on a condition that he will have to marry the complainant, who is currently untraceable, if she is found in one year’s time. The court said, he will not be bound by this condition beyond one year, a single bench of Justice Bharati Dangre said in the order passed on October 12. As per the officials, the case was lodged against the accused in late 2019. In the complaint, the victim had alleged that the two were in relationship since 2018, were living together and that their parents had no objection to their live-in relationship. However, in 2019, she realized that she was pregnant and informed the accused, but he started avoiding her. The woman left her house as she did not want to reveal about the pregnancy to her family members. On January 27, 2020, she delivered a baby in a city hospital. Three days later, she abandoned the baby at the gate of a building. And filed a complaint against the accused in police station. Post this, he was arrested. A separate FIR was lodged against her for abandoning the child while the child was given to adoption few days later. The court said the accused and the 22-year-old woman were in a consensual relationship, but a rape and cheating case was registered when the man started avoiding her after learning that she was pregnant. Justice Dangre in her order said she is fleeing from the course of justice may be because of abandoning the baby. Meanwhile, the accused assured the HC that he was willing to marry the woman and accept paternity of the child. The court then said, that the victim was major and she has already stated that the relationship was consensual at the time of reporting the case," the HC said. “I deem it appropriate to release the applicant on bail subject to compliance that if the victim is traced within a short while and say in a period of one year, he shall solemnise marriage with her, but he shall not be bound by the statement beyond one year,” the order said. The court granted bail to the man on a bond of Rs25,000. (input from PTI)