NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has ruled that consensual physical relations cannot retrospectively be treated as rape merely because a relationship subsequently turns sour.
A Bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan discharged a man facing criminal charges, observing that the entire course of a relationship must be examined before criminal liability is established.
The Court cautioned against using criminal proceedings to settle personal scores, while underscoring that genuine cases of sexual exploitation must be dealt with in accordance with law.