The Allahabad High Court discharges Congress MP Rakesh Rathore in a rape case, holding that the allegations amount to a consensual extramarital relationship rather than a criminal offence. The court’s order comes from Justice Subhash Vidyarthi.
In the case, the complainant alleges that Rathore established a physical relationship by promising to marry her. The court finds that, at the prima facie stage, this allegation does not raise strong suspicion of the commission of the alleged offence. It also notes evidence of an ongoing relationship between the parties, which it says undermines claims of fraud made by the complainant.
While lower-court proceedings had previously not accepted Rathore’s plea, the High Court ultimately concludes that pursuing the matter further would be an improper use of judicial resources. Different outlets describe the reasoning in similar terms, emphasizing the “consensual” characterization and the insufficiency of the complainant’s fraud-related assertion at the threshold.
