Team Goemkarponn
NORTH GOA: A relationship that ends because of family resistance cannot automatically be treated as sexual exploitation through a false marriage promise, the North Goa Fast Track Special Court has observed while acquitting a 24-year-old man from West Bengal in a rape case.
The accused, Mainul Hasan Chowdhury, a resident of Barddhaman, was given the benefit of doubt after the court found insufficient evidence to establish that he had entered into the relationship with an intention to deceive the complainant.
Chowdhury was taken into custody by Anjuna Police in March 2024 following allegations by a woman who had previously worked with him. The prosecution’s case was that he had sexual relations with her on several occasions in December 2023 by allegedly assuring her of marriage.
The two first came into contact during a video interview for a bartender’s vacancy at a restaurant in Anjuna, where Chowdhury was working as a manager. The woman, then around 22 years old, arrived in Goa on December 2, 2023, and the two subsequently developed an intimate relationship while staying at a guest house.
The relationship took a different turn later that month when the woman discovered her pregnancy. Following the disclosure to their employer, Chowdhury reportedly lost his employment and accommodation before leaving Goa, fearing legal consequences.
An FIR was registered by the woman on January 6, 2024. During the trial, she also spoke about being encouraged by people close to her, including family members and colleagues, to initiate legal proceedings.
A crucial aspect of the case emerged during her cross-examination, when the complainant acknowledged that the physical relationship had been consensual. She also stated that Chowdhury had not used force against her and confirmed that he had proposed marriage, which she had accepted after making her own inquiries.
The court also considered evidence indicating that the proposed marriage faced opposition from both families because of their different religious backgrounds.
In assessing the allegations, the court relied on judicial precedents that distinguish between a marriage assurance made dishonestly from the outset and a genuine commitment that subsequently remains unfulfilled.
It noted that criminal liability cannot be established merely because a relationship or marriage proposal does not reach its intended conclusion. The prosecution must demonstrate that the accused never genuinely intended to marry and used the assurance as a means to obtain sexual consent.
In the present matter, the court found no convincing material to establish such an intention on Chowdhury’s part when the relationship began.
Holding that the evidence did not prove the allegations beyond reasonable doubt, the court concluded that the failure of the relationship, amid opposition from the families over religious differences, could not by itself establish the offence alleged.
Chowdhury was accordingly acquitted, with the court extending to him the benefit of doubt.
