Woman booking, entering hotel room with man does not mean she gave consent for sex: Bombay High Court

MUMBAI: If a woman books a hotel room with a man and enters it, does that mean she has given her consent for sexual relations? In several harassment and rape cases registered in the country, it is often asked why a woman knowingly entered a hotel room with a man. However, the Bombay High Court has observed that simply booking a hotel room and entering it with a man does not imply consent for sexual relations.

The observation was made by the single bench of the Bombay High Court. It was Justice Bharat Deshpande who issued the order rejecting the order issued by the Madgaon trial court in March 2021. The court also overturned the lower court's acquittal of a man named Gulshan Ahmed in a rape case in 2021.

The lower court had acquitted the accused by pointing out that the woman had given consent for sexual intercourse by accompanying the accused to book the hotel room and entering the room with him. The High Court made the observation regarding the case on September 3.

The woman had lodged a complaint soon after the incident. As per the complaint, the accused had promised to get the woman a job in a foreign country and took her to a hotel in Madgaon, saying that they would meet an agent for the purpose of the job. After entering the room, he raped her after threatening to kill her. She told the police she managed to run away from the room while the accused went to the bathroom.