Man acquitted in rape case as woman turns hostile

A man accused of raping a woman security guard has been acquitted by a Delhi court after the alleged victim retracted her statement and said that physical relations between them were consensual.

Additional Sessions Judge Kaveri Baweja absolved the man, a Delhi resident, of the charges of poisoning and raping the woman, who worked as a security guard at an eye hospital here, after she changed her stand saying that she was in love with him and lodged a false case under police pressure.

"A bare perusal of the testimony of the woman, on whose complaint the case was registered, reveals that she failed to support the case of the prosecution in its entirety...

"In the light of deposition of the woman that physical relations were established with the accused with her consent as she is having affair with him for the last three years and this case was registered by her at the instance of police, I find that there is no material on record whatsoever for convicting the accused for the offence with which he was charged," the judge said.

According to the prosecution, the woman had lodged a complaint with the police alleging that on August 21, 2014, when she was on duty outside the hospital, the man picked her up in his car and they reached a hotel in New Friends Colony area where the accused had taken a room.

Thereafter, he made her consume a sedative-laced drink and established physical relations with her against her wishes, it said, adding that the woman was confined to the room until the next morning.

The man had also threatened to kill her if she disclosed the incident to anyone, it had said.

During cross examination, however, the woman said that a quarrel took place between her and the man after they returned from the hotel, because of which she was under depression and lodged a complaint at the instance of police.

She had further deposed that she was involved in a relationship with the man for the last three years and physical relations between them were consensual.