A man entered a woman’s house at night and allegedly tried to rape her. The court modified the charge to outraging the modesty of a woman. The alleged offence took place in 1999. 26 years later, the court has said that a rape case is not made out.
The Jharkhand High Court modified the charge to outraging the modesty of a woman in a 26-year-old case.
The Jharkhand High Court has held that merely entering a woman’s house at night and lifting her clothes would not amount to commission of rape or an attempt to commit rape as per the Indian Penal Code. In its order, the High Court stated that an examination of the victim’s testimony reveals no specific overt act on the part of the accused that could be construed as a step taken towards committing rape. The High Court, while modifying the sentence, ordered that since the appellant had already undergone about eight months of custody during the trial, it would be sufficient to meet the ends of justice. The victim had alleged that the appellant had entered her house on the previous night and tried to lift her clothes to rape her. Subsequently, the trial court convicted and sentenced him to undergo imprisonment of four years.
The convict was arrested by the police after an FIR was registered on December 27, 1999.
The police investigation found the appellant guilty of “attempt to commit rape”.
