Now Reading: Kerala High Court: hiding live-in relationship is deceitful sex
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Kerala High Court: hiding live-in relationship is deceitful sex
The Kerala High Court has ruled that concealing a live-in relationship and a child from that relationship before fixing a marriage with another woman amounts to 'deceitful means' to obtain sexual consent under Section 69 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Justice A Badharudeen made the observation on 6 October while dismissing a man's appeal against the rejection of his anticipatory bail plea.
The accused was booked under Sections 318(4) and 69 of the BNS and the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act after a woman, a Scheduled Caste member, alleged that he suppressed his existing live-in relationship and a three-year-old child when their marriage was fixed. She claimed he compelled her to have sex in a Wayanad hotel on the premise of their proposed marriage.
The court held that the allegations fall under the first limb of Section 69, which covers sexual intercourse through deceitful means, regardless of the accused's willingness to marry. LiveLaw and Bar & Bench reported that the court found a prima facie case, applied the bar on anticipatory bail under Section 18 of the SC/ST Act, and directed the accused to surrender.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both LiveLaw and Bar & Bench reported the same ruling with near-identical factual details and quotes from Justice Badharudeen's order, resulting in uniform straight coverage. The two reports differed only in minor framing: Bar & Bench highlighted the Rs 10 lakh the woman's family spent on the marriage-fixation ceremony, a detail LiveLaw omitted. LiveLaw focused more on the accused's legal arguments, including the contention that Section 69 requires retraction from a promise to marry, which the court rejected. The core legal principle, that concealment of a prior relationship and a child can constitute deceitful means under Section 69 BNS, is consistent across both outlets. The ruling leaves open how lower courts will apply this interpretation in similar cases involving pre-marital concealment and consent.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): livelaw.in (neutral report), barandbench.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
