Western Influence and Live-in Relationships Contribute to Rise in False Cases: Allahabad HC

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The Allahabad High Court has made a significant observation while setting aside a life sentence in a sexual assault case. The court noted that the growing influence of Western ideas and the concept of live-in relationships is contributing to a rise in criminal cases when such relationships break down. This observation came while the court was hearing an appeal filed by Chandresh, who was convicted of luring a 20-year-old woman to Bengaluru on the pretext of marriage and establishing physical relations with her. The prosecution had alleged that Chandresh had lured the woman's minor daughter, but the high court found that the victim was an adult at the time of the incident. The trial court had failed to properly consider the ossification test report, which assessed the woman's age to be around 20 years. The division bench of Justice Siddharth and Justice Prashant Mishra said that the case was an example of the increasing tendency of youth living together without solemnization of marriage under the influence of Western ideas and the concept of live-in relationships. The bench noted that after such relationships fail, FIRs are lodged, and the laws being in favor of women, the boys/men get convicted relying upon the laws which were made when the concept of live-in was nowhere in existence. The court also examined the conduct of the victim, who had voluntarily left her home and traveled with Chandresh to Bengaluru. Despite traveling in government buses and trains, she did not raise any objection and lived with Chandresh for about six months in a residential area in Bengaluru. The bench pointed out that school records produced by the prosecution were not proved in accordance with the Juvenile Justice Rules, and discrepancies were noted in the age stated by the victim's mother. The high court's observation highlights the need for a re-evaluation of laws and their application in cases where live-in relationships break down. The court's decision to quash Chandresh's conviction has sparked debate and raised questions about the fairness and effectiveness of the justice system in handling such cases.