Can’t check Aadhaar, pan card before sex: HC on minor’s rape charge

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said that a person in consensual physical relationship is not required to judicially scrutinize the date of birth of his partner. The court made its observation while granting bail to a man accused of raping a minor girl.

There is no need to check a person’s Aadhaar card or PAN card or verify the partner’s date of birth from school records before getting into a consensual physical relationship, said the court. It added that according to the documents submitted by the girl, she had three different dates of birth. "The very fact that there is an Aadhaar card and that the same shows the date of birth as 01.01.1998 is sufficient for the applicant to form an opinion that he was not indulging in a physical relationship with a minor," said Justice Jasmeet Singh.

The alleged incidents took place in 2019 and 2021. However, an FIR was registered only in April. The complainant has not presented satisfactory reason for the delay. “I am, prima facie, of the view that this also seems to be a case of honey-trapping. As per the prosecutrix's own showing and as stated in the FIR, she has had a relationship with the applicant from 2019. If the applicant had blackmailed the prosecutrix, there was nothing preventing her from approaching the police at an earlier stage," stated the court. The court also directed to release the accused on a personal bond with local surety of Rs 20,000. He should appear before the court whenever the case is taken up for hearing.