False Marriage Shocker: Woman Tricked into 16-Year Sexual Relationship, Says SC

Viral News: The Supreme Court dismissed criminal proceedings against a man who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman on the false pretext of marriage. The Supreme Court said that a woman who has been in a live-in relationship for a long time cannot accuse her live-in partner of forcing her to have physical relations by making a false promise of marriage. The Supreme Court said that in such a situation it cannot be said with certainty that the physical relationship was only due to the promise.

Living a Lie: Her 16-Year Struggle Under False Pretenses  

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta refused to accept the plea of ​​the woman, a lecturer, who alleged that she had sexual relations with her partner for 16 years on the basis of the promise of marriage. The court said that both the partners were well educated and it was a consensual relationship as both of them used to visit each other's house despite being posted in different cities. It is clearly a case of love affair/live-in relationship which turned sour.

Justice in Question: SC Confronts the Fallout of the Fraud 
It is hard to believe that the complainant kept succumbing to the demands of the appellant for a period of about 16 years without any protest that the appellant was sexually exploiting her on the pretext of a false promise of marriage. The long period of 16 years, during which the sexual relations between the two parties continued unabated, is sufficient to conclude that there was never an element of force or deception in the relationship.

The court said that in such cases, even if it is assumed that a false promise was made, the fact that the relationship continued for so long would render the plea of ​​the complainant unbelievable that her consent for so many years was under the misconception of the fact that the accused would marry her.