Karnataka High Court orders Biological Father to pay maintenance for the child Born out of an extra Marital affair, but quashes allegation against cheating and Criminal Intimidation
Title: Shri. Raghvendraraddi Shivaraddi Naduvinamani v State of Karnataka & ors.
Citation: Criminal Petition No. 100721 of 2023
Decided On: 20.10.2023
Corum: Justice M Nagaprasanna
Facts of the Case
The Complainant and Petitioner the claimed to be in Relationship since 2018 engaging in physical intimacy, but the complainant later married to another Ramkrishna Kadligondi (who was not the petitioner) in June 2021. Due to the disruptions in marriage the complainant had moved out of her husband’s residence and shifted back to her maternal home. While she was rescinding at her parent’s place, the petitioner allegedly lured her back into starting a relation and expressed all his intentions of being with her and promised her of marriage upon her Divorce with Ramkrishna Kadligondi. As a consequence of this extra marital affair of the complainant, she discovers that she is pregnant with a child.
Later upon the petitioner’s discovery of the pregnancy of the complainant the petitioner denies in the relation between him and the complainant and further claims that he will get married to another who is not the complainant and further went ahead and did the same. The complainant also submits to the court that the two were in love and had promised to get married but due to the complications in their relationship and the strained relation between complainant and her husband the petitioner also threatened to reveal about the relation between the complainant and the petitioner to her husband and if he did revel about the same her husband would even take her life away.
Upon the Forensic reports it was found that the child the complainant bore is of the petitioners. The complainant aggrieved by this filed and complainant of cheating and rape against the petitioner.
Legal Provision
Complaint is filed against the petitioner under sections 376, 506, 417, 420 of the Indian Penal Code which provides for the offence of Rape, Cheating and Criminal Intimidation respectively. The court considered the issue as to whether the offence of rape could be met and whether the offence of cheating must be considered.
Court Analysis and Judgement
The Hon’ble High Court upon observing the materials placed on record including the Charge Sheet and the DNA report held that the act did not amount to the offence of rape and quashed the offence punishable under 376 of IPC, but upheld the proceedings against the Petitioner for Offences under 417, 420, and 506 of the IPC.
The court quashed the offence of rape in the complaint on the fact that both the parties were educated adults who entered into such a physical relationship with consent. The court also placed reliance on the judgement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Shambhu Karwar v. State Of Uttar Pradesh And Another (2022 SCC Online SC 1032) and held that the offence under Section 376 of the IPC cannot be laid against the petitioner and permitting further proceedings to continue would become an abuse of the process of the law.
However, the Hon’ble High Court upheld and permitted proceedings against the Petitioner for offences of Cheating and Criminal Intimidation under sections 506, 417 and 420 of the IPC.
The Court in order to protect the interests of the innocent child born out of the relationship took into record the DNA Report which states that the Petitioner and Complainant are the biological parents of the child and ordered the petitioner to pay maintenance to the child at Rs.10,000/- p.m., from the date of receipt of a copy of the order, till conclusion of the trial.
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Written by- Namitha Ramesh