Removing minor girl's innerwear and getting naked before her is not rape: Rajasthan High Court

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan High Court ruled that the act of removing a minor girl's innerwear and getting naked before the girl does not amount to an 'attempt to commit rape'. The court made the observation while delivering a verdict in a 33-year-old case. However, the court added that such acts would be considered an offence of outraging the woman's modesty.

The court issued the verdict in the incident that took place in 1991. The girl was just 6 years old when the incident took place. The accused was 25 years old then. The girl was drinking water from a pipe when the accused forcefully took her to a nearby building. He then undressed the girl and got naked before her. As the accused attempted to rape her, the girl shouted and the locals gathered in the area. Following this, the accused fled the scene.

It was the child's grandmother who went ahead with the case. However, she had not alleged in the complaint that the youth attempted to rape the child. A single bench headed by Justice Dhand observed that sections 376 and 511 of the IPC cannot be imposed in this complaint.

Earlier, the trial court had convicted the accused in the case. The Tonk District Court convicted the accused for attempted rape. During the trial, the accused remained in jail for two and a half months