Shiney had consensual sex, asserts lawyer
‘I (Shiney) am not a saint in a sense, but neither a rapist’
Bollywood actor Shiney Ahuja’s lawyer on Tuesday acknowleged before the Bombay High Court that his client had sex with the complainant maid but insisted that it was a 'consensual' sex and not a rape.
Shiney’s lawyers had earlier taken a stand before the sessions court that there was no intercourse between him and the maid, who has complained of rape, but arguing before the high court, the actor’s lawyer said evidence indicated a “consensual sexual intercourse” between the actor and the girl.
“I (Shiney) am not a saint in a sense, but not a rapist,” said advocate Shirish Gupte, representing Shiney.
Shiney was arrested by police on June 15, after his 20-year-old domestic maid alleged rape. Since then he is in custody, and lower court is set to frame charges in the case.
Gupte argued that medical and other evidence suggested that intercourse was entirely with the girl’s consent. “She was habituated to this (intercourse),” he alleged. “She had history of closeness to men.”
Gupte said that as per medical reports, there were no injuries on Shiney’s body, barring one between two fingers. “It could be love-bites... or she clutched his hand very hard,” he said. Had the girl resisted, she could have scratched Shiney’s face, or upper body, and face.
Gupte also alleged that on the night before the incident, the girl had called Shiney’s house 10 times from her cellphone. He said there were no injuries on the girl’s body, nor were there any signs of damage on her clothes, to suggest use of force.
Also, no body fluids were found on her clothes, he pointed out. The girl’s “pattern of behaviour” shows that she was “consenting party,” Shiney’s lawyer argued.
The girl had told the police that on June 13, a day before the incident, Shiney had touched her in a wrong way when she had clambered on a basin to turn on overhead water tank, and she had chided him for that.
Atyachar
She did not tell this to other maidservants, or to anybody else, Gupte pointed out. Even in the statement recorded before magistrate, the girl used the word “atyachar” (atrocity) and did not mention rape,” he argued, adding that medical report too does not say there was intercourse.
Gupte also mentioned that though the victim’s vaginal swab was taken for examination, medical report talks about ‘slide’, and not a swab. “What happened to swab,” he asked.
Refuting the lower court’s observation that Shiney was an “influential person”, and he may pressurise victim if released on bail, Gupte said “he is not on high pedestal of acting...he is a small-time actor.”
Arguments will continue before justice A P Deshpande on Wednesday.
