Marriage With Minor Invalid, Can't Be Invoked To 'Sanitize' Rape Offence: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has observed that since marriage with a minor is legally void under Indian law, it cannot be invoked to “sanitize” the offence of rape.“Moreover, a marriage with a minor is not only invalid under Indian law but also irrelevant for the purpose of determining the applicability of the offence of rape when the prosecutrix is under the age of consent. In other words, the purported marriage, in this context, is legally void and cannot be invoked to sanitize what the law defines as statutory rape,” Justice Sanjeev Narula said. The Court dismissed a plea filed by a man seeking bail in a case alleging that he repeatedly sexually assaulted a minor aged approximately 16 years, who later committed suicide. The case was registered for the offence of rape and POCSO Act. As per the deceased's sister, the accused allegedly lured the minor, developed physical relations with her and later took her away with him. It was alleged that the deceased was approximately two months into her gestation, and that the accused had been subjecting her to physical abuse. It was further alleged that the cumulative effect of his conduct drove the deceased to end her life.The accused, aged 34 years, justified his alleged relationship with the deceased on the ground that it was consensual and within the bounds of a purported marriage. He further argued that the pregnancy resulting from the relationship was consensual and, therefore, would not attract the offence of rape.Dismissing the plea, Justice Narula found the accused's plea of a consensual relationship “masked as marriage” to be wholly “untenable and misconceived.”“The Applicant, being 34 years old, was more than twice the age of the victim. This glaring age gap raises serious concerns about exploitation, undue influence, and manipulation, especially in a setting where the victim was economically and socially vulnerable. The disparity between them is not merely numerical but speaks to a fundamental imbalance that renders any notion of consent illusory,” the Court said.Justice Narula said that he was not persuaded by the accused's alternative argument that the deceased was 19 years old at the time of the alleged incident. The Court said that such a factual dispute must be determined during the course of trial, by adducing appropriate evidence and cannot form the basis for grant of bail, especially when the allegations involved a minor.“The circumstances of the case where the deceased appears to have been lured, sexually assaulted which resulted in pregnancy, and allegedly subjected to physical abuse, point not only to the offence of statutory rape under Section 376 of IPC, but may also attract aggravated penetrative sexual assault under POCSO, having regard to the Applicant's position vis-à-vis the minor,” the Court said. It added that it cannot ignore the possibility that the deceased's extreme step of suicide may have been triggered by such abuse, further amplifying the gravity of the allegations. “Thus, given the gravity of the accusations against the Applicant, the risk of tampering of evidence and flight risk, and the broader public interest in deterring sexual offences against children, in the prima facie opinion of this Court, the Applicant does not deserve the discretionary relief of bail at the present stage,” the Court concluded. Title: JASWANT SINGH v. STATE OF NCT OF DELHICitation: 2025 LiveLaw (Del) 915Click here to read order

Marriage With Minor Invalid, Can't Be Invoked To 'Sanitize' Rape Offence: Delhi High Court

Nupur Thapliyal

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