Supreme Court Criticizes Allahabad High Court for Saying Rape ‘Victim Invited Trouble’

Supreme Court Criticizes Allahabad High Court: On Tuesday, the Supreme Court expressed dissent about the Allahabad High Court's recent remarks in a case of rape stating that the complainant "herself invited trouble" and pondered about the relevance of these comments in the context of a bail decision.

The High Court recently granted bail in the case of alleged rape, stating the complainant "herself invited trouble" in coming over to the applicant's house when drunk.

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The derogatory remarks garnered the attention of the Supreme Court, which has initiated a suo motu hearing of the Allahabad High Court's March 17 order upholding the view that grabbing breasts and tugging away the drawstring of a woman's pyjama cannot constitute the offence of attempt to rape.

"There is another order passed by another judge of the same high court," a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih said. Justice Gavai and Augustine George Masih said.

Justice Gavai went on, "If one wants to grant bail that is okay but why make such observations that she invited trouble and all that. One has to be very careful on this side (bench) also."

Solicitor general Tushar Mehta maintained that that the way comments are perceived by the common man must be kept in account.

The Bench adjourned the hearing of the suo motu case for four weeks.

On 26 March, the Supreme Court stayed the operation of the order passed by the High Court on 17 March in the attempt of rape case, meaning that issue cannot be pressed in any judicial forum for relief by the accused or other parties.

Some of the observations noted in the order, the apex court stated, reflected total "insensitivity" and "inhuman approach".

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This suo motu case had arose after Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna brought the matter to light.

The High Court's order stated that the offence of attempted rape may not have been made out against the accused, and that the accused would be liable for summons for assault or for waiving away a woman with criminal force.

The High Court issued its directions upon an application filed by the accused that challenged a special judge's order in Kasganj summoning them for offences under section 376 (rape) of the IPC together with other sections.

In another case, the high court passed an order granting bail to an accused and said, "Having heard counsel for the parties and examined the matter in its entirety, I find that it is not in dispute that victim and applicant both are major. Victim is student of M.A., hence she was competent enough to understand the morality and significance of her act as disclosed by her in the FIR."

The court added, "This court is of the view that even if the allegation of the victim is accepted as true, then it can also be concluded that she herself invited trouble and was also responsible for the same." PTI

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