(1.) The petitioner, who was arrested and remanded to judicial custody on 30/10/2022, for the offences punishable under Ss. 376 and 506(ii) of IPC, in Crime No.568 of 2022, on the file of the respondent police, seeks bail.
(2.) The case of the prosecution as per the de-facto complainant is that she has completed M.A. degree and she is at home and that there was a marriage proposal from the petitioner, who belongs to the same village, and it was refused by the de-facto complainant's parents. Subsequently, the petitioner had approached the de-facto complainant saying that he loves her and if she does not love him, he threatened her that he will do away with her family members. On a particular day, when she was alone at home, the petitioner had committed rape on her by threatening her at knife point. On 5/10/2022, the de-facto complainant got stomach pain and she was taken to the Omalur Government Hospital, where she has delivered a female baby. Further averment is that when she was pregnant, in order to avoid the other people knowing about it, she had tied a cloth tightly over her stomach and concealed her pregnancy. Thereafter, the de-facto complainant's parents along with others went to the accused house and asked him to marry the de-facto complainant, whereas, the family members of the accused had refused and threatened them saying that they will kill and bury them. Hence the case.
(3.) The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that reading of the First Information Report would show that it is a fabricated case. He would further submit that the de-facto complainant is a matured lady aged about 24 years and it is strictly improbable and impossible that she could conceal her pregnancy for 10 months and reported it to her parents only after she had delivered the female child. He would also submit that the fact remains that the family members of the de-facto complainant suspecting that the petitioner is responsible for the pregnancy had compelled the petitioner to marry her and when it was refused, the parents of the de-facto complainant along with the relatives have assaulted the petitioner and his parents, in respect of which, a case in Crime No.518 of 2022 was registered by the respondent Police for the offence under Sec. 506(ii) IPC, based on the complaint given by the petitioner's brother against the family members of the de-facto complainant. He would also submit that only as a counter blast, after a period of 19 days, the present case has been foisted as against the petitioner and the petitioner is in custody from 30/10/2022 and thereby, he prays for grant of bail to the petitioner.