Kerala High Court Quashes Rape Case Due to Unexplained 16-Year Delay

The Kerala High Court recently dismissed criminal proceedings in a rape case after determining that the 16-year delay in filing the case was unjustified and detrimental to the prosecution's claims.

The case involved allegations from the de facto complainant, who claimed that the petitioner had raped her in 2001. However, the First Information Statement (FIS) was only filed in 2017. The court observed that such a significant delay in bringing forth the allegations made the prosecution's case untenable and raised doubts about the credibility of the claims.

Justice A. Badharudeen pointed out that the complainant continued to maintain a relationship with the petitioner even after the alleged incident in 2001, suggesting that their relationship was consensual. The court emphasized that delays in reporting such incidents must be adequately explained, and in this case, the lack of a valid reason for the 16-year delay rendered the accusations questionable. The possibility of false implications was deemed high due to the extended delay, leading the court to conclude that the relationship appeared consensual rather than forced.

The case had initially led to charges under Sections 323 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) being filed against the petitioner. However, the petitioner's counsel argued that the FIR was registered only in 2017 and that the complainant had lent the petitioner 20 lakh rupees during their relationship, further indicating a consensual relationship. Additionally, it was noted that the matter had since been resolved between the parties.

In its ruling, the court highlighted that the rape allegation seemed to be motivated by other factors, particularly financial disputes, as the petitioner owed a significant sum to the complainant at the time of the FIS filing. Given that the complainant no longer had any grievances and had settled the matter with the petitioner, the court decided to quash the criminal proceedings.