Court acquits man in rape case as girl turns hostile

A man accused of raping a girl from the North-east on a false promise of marriage has been acquitted by a Delhi court as she turned hostile and deposed that he had never established physical relations with her.
Additional Sessions Judge Yogesh Khanna acquitted west Delhi resident Kunal Tiwari, who was charged with the offences of rape (section 376) and criminal intimidation (section 506) under the IPC.
"Considering the deposition of the prosecutrix wherein she had denied that she was ever raped by the accused and since she has stated that the allegations set forth in her statements are false and that she was never raped by accused on the pretext of marrying her, so it can safely be said that prosecution has failed to prove its case against the accused," the judge said.

"In view of the facts and circumstances of the case, where the prosecutrix has turned hostile and had not supported the case of the prosecution, the accused becomes entitled to benefit of doubt. The accused is thus acquitted of the charge under section 376 IPC," the court said.
According to the prosecution, the girl met Kunal in 2012 in a birthday party where they developed friendship. Whenever they met, he tried to establish physical relations but she refused, saying he should first marry her.
Later, on the pretext of marriage, Kunal made physical relations with her against her will, it claimed.

In December 2013, the accused came to her house and raped her and when he went to bathroom, she bolted the door of the bathroom from outside and called the police, it added.
The girl, however, changed her statement before the court, saying that Kunal did not rape her and that police had obtained her signatures on blank papers and later made up the allegations.
The court did not record the statement of the accused, saying no incriminating material came out against him during the trial.