The Allahabad High Court has granted bail to a man booked under the new unlawful conversion law in Uttar Pradesh noting that the victim, an adult, had gone with him to a hotel room, where he allegedly raped her, “on her own sweet-will”.
The court noted that the girl and the accused “were in a relationship since long and she used to spend time with the applicant and used to travel with him and went to a room of a hotel on her own sweet-will”.
Last December, Sonu Rajpoot alias Zubair had been booked for rape, cheating and criminal intimidation and also slapped with with Sections 3/5 of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Religion Conversion Act by the Nauchandi police in Meerut district.
The lawyer of the accused citing the FIR argued that the girl had on her free will travelled with the man as they were in a relationship and the two used to spend time together.
The woman had alleged that the man established physical relationship with her “against her wishes”, which amounts to rape. She also alleged that she did not know his religious identity till she saw his real name in the register of the hotel.
The man’s lawyer argued that there was some dispute between the two relating to their community and as such their relationship could not materialise.
The accused side also argued that while the alleged rape was reported to have happened on November 28, 2020, the woman lodged the FIR on December 29. A medical examination of the woman done on January 4, 2020, showed no signs of use of force, they further argued.
The victim is a major and working and as such was very well aware of worldly affairs, the counsel for the accused argued.
While granting bail to the man, Justice Samit Gopal on May 27 noted, “Looking to the facts and circumstances of this case, the nature of evidence and also the absence of any convincing material to indicate the possibility of tampering with the evidence, this court is of the view that the applicant may be enlarged on bail.”
