The Supreme Court has observed that if no deliberation about marriage between the prosecutrix and the accused took place before the alleged sexual contact which was consensual, it cannot be said that the consent has been given under misconception of marriage. Apex Court bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justice V. Gopala Gowda made this observation in Tilak Raj vs. State of Himachal Pradesh, while acquitting the accused from all the charges against him.

In this case, Trial Court had acquitted the accused from all the charges. On appeal, High Court though did not interfere with the findings of Trial court as regards the offence of rape, convicted the accused under Section 420 and 506 of IPC. The accused preferred appeal in Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court said that the Trial Court rightly observed the following “The prosecutrix has said a line in her examination-in-chief, but her cross-examination shows that no doubt the two were in relationship, but the question of marriage apparently had not been deliberated upon by any of the two. After the sexual contact, come talk about marriage had cropped up between the two. Thus, it also cannot be said that the consent for sexual intercourse had been given by the prosecutrix under some misconception of marriage.”

The Court also acquitted the accused of all the charges holding that the prosecution has failed to establish any of them.