JOIN USWill you marry the girl? Supreme Court asks rape accused
The Supreme Court on Monday asked a government servant from Maharashtra, accused of repeatedly raping a girl, if he would marry her.
"You should have thought before seducing and raping the young girl. You knew you are a government servant. If you marry her, we can help. If you don't, you lose your job and go to jail," Chief Justice S A Bobde-led bench told a counsel, appearing for Mohit Subhash Chavan.
The court said it would stay the arrest for four weeks to enable him to join investigation and apply for regular bail, after his counsel said that the man was already married.
The observations by the CJI spurred angry reactions in social media with some terming it as shocking and like a 'Khap Panchayat'.
Earlier, during the hearing on his advance bail plea, a bench said, "We are not forcing you to marry. Let us know if you will. Otherwise you will say we are forcing you to marry her."
The counsel sought time to take instructions in the matter. As he said the man had got married with some other girl, after the complainant refused, the court asked him to go for regular bail.
23-year-old petitioner, working with a state electricity company, challenged the Bombay High Court order of February 5, 2021 that cancelled the anticipatory bail granted to him by the sessions court on January 6, 2020.
An FIR was lodged against the man in Jalgaon on December 17, 2019. The 18-year-old girl alleged that the accused used to stalk her when she was studying in 9th standard in the year 2014-2015. He, one day, entered her house and allegedly rape her. He also allegedly threatened her of dire consequences if the incident was disclosed.
He continued to allegedly exploit her since then and in June, 2018 when she went to police station to lodge the case, the accused, along with his mother, gave a written undertaking to marry her, according to the complainant.