MP High Court Dismisses Rape Charges Against Doctor After 10-Year Relationship Cited

Madhya Pradesh High Court quashed an FIR against a government doctor accused of rape, citing a decade-long consensual relationship. The court ruled the accusation couldn't hold since the woman waited until marriage refusal to file the complaint. The decision also highlighted the lack of initial malintent.

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has quashed an FIR against a government doctor accused of rape, citing the long-term consensual relationship between the accused and the complainant. The court noted that the relationship had spanned over a decade and thus, the rape charges were not sustainable.

The FIR, filed on November 26, 2021, accused the doctor, posted at the government hospital in Katni district, of developing physical relations with the woman under false promises of marriage since 2010. The woman alleged that the doctor had proposed to her and continued the relationship until he refused to marry her.

In its order, the court emphasized that since the relationship endured for a decade, and the complainant did not register any FIR until the accused refused marriage, consent could not be viewed as obtained under a misconception of fact. The court also mentioned that the attempt to mediate a consensus between the parties' families failed.

Highlighting the Supreme Court's stance on consent and intention, the judge clarified that adequate evidence must show an initial intention not to marry for such charges to hold. Consequently, the court quashed the FIR and the charge sheet against the doctor registered under multiple sections of the IPC.

(With inputs from agencies.)