Sexual abuse complaint against married woman will not stand, HC rejects case against Kollam native

KOCHI: The Kerala High Court pronounced the verdict in the case of sexually abusing a married woman on the pretext of marriage. The court said the case will not stand and if the complainant, who is legally married, complains that she was sexually abused on the pretext of marriage to the extent that another marriage is not possible, no action can be taken. Justice Kauser Edappagath, who considered the case, said the issue of fake marriage promise does not arise here.

The order of the high court single bench’s order was on the plea filed by Kollam native Tino Thankachan. A woman and a youth working in Australia got acquainted via Facebook and fell in love. The woman was at this time estranged from her husband. Both decided to get married and had sex. The accused’ lawyer argued in the court that all these things are mentioned in the woman’s complaint. The plea was filed in the high court after a case was filed at the Punalur police on the woman’s complaint that she was sexually abused on the pretext of marriage. The petitioner was acquitted in the case citing the high court's earlier order that consensual sex cannot be considered as rape.