Man acquitted of raping, forcing wife into prostitution as she dies during trial

A man has been acquitted of the charges of raping his wife, having unnatural sex with her and forcing her into prostitution as the victim could not appear in the witness box before she died.

New Delhi: A man has been acquitted of the charges of raping his wife, having unnatural sex with her and forcing her into prostitution as she died before her testimony could be recorded.

Additional Sessions Judge Umed Singh Grewal acquitted the man as the medical examination reports also did not prove the allegations.

"The net result is that the victim could not appear in the witness box before death. The prosecution did not cite any other star witness (key witness)... It is held that prosecution has failed to prove the case against the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. Hence, the accused is acquitted of the offences he was charged with," the court said in its order.

The order does not mention the cause of the woman's death.

According to the prosecution, the accused had allegedly asked his wife to indulge in prostitution just a month after their marriage in 2011 and he badly beat her up when she refused.

It alleged the man kept pressuring his wife also thrashed her until she gave in.

The prosecution further claimed that whenever she resisted, her husband would threaten to kill her and her family members. The complaint alleged that he also forced her to have unnatural sex with him.

The woman, assisted by an NGO official, lodged a police complaint in 2015 and a case was registered under sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural sex) 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act.

The accused pleaded not guilty and had sought trial.

During the trial, the investigating officer informed the court that when she visited the woman's home to serve summons for her appearance in 2018, her father told her that the woman had died in 2017.

(PTI report)