November 24, 2000 : The Chhattisgarh High Court at Bilaspur has granted bail to a man accused under Sections 376 (rape) and 450 (house trespass) of the Indian Penal Code, noting inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s age and observing that she appeared to be a consenting party. The order was passed by Acting Chief Justice R. S. Garg while hearing a miscellaneous criminal case arising from Crime No. 109 of 2000 registered at Police Station Gurur in Durg district.

According to the prosecution, the accused allegedly enticed a girl below 15 years of age, established physical relations with her on the promise of marriage, and committed house trespass in the process. The police charged him under Sections 376 and 450 of the IPC. However, during the hearing, the court noted a serious discrepancy regarding the girl’s age. The prosecution claimed her date of birth was February 2, 1985, while the lower court record based on the Kotwar Pustak (village record) mentioned it as January 7, 1984.

Justice Garg observed that even though the prosecution alleged the girl was underage, the record indicated she was a consenting party. Considering both the nature of the allegations and the conduct of the prosecutrix, the court found it appropriate to grant bail to the applicant.

The High Court directed that the accused be released on bail upon furnishing a personal bond of ₹10,000 along with one surety of the same amount to the satisfaction of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Durg.

Case Reference : Misc. Cr. Case No. 5855 of 2000, Omprakash v. State of M.P., Counsels: Shri R.K. Singh, Advocate for the Petitioner and Dr. N.K. Shukla, Deputy Advocate General for the State.