LegalAware
LegalAware.ai
EMPOWERING LEGAL AWARENESS

Kavita Chandrakant Lakhani v. The State of Maharashtra

Criminal Appeal · 2018 INSC 402Decided 24 Apr 2018
Criminal Appeal No. 459 of 2016
Justice A.K. Sikri · Justice R.K. Agrawal

Background

The appellant had lodged an FIR alleging that after a birthday party in 2003, Respondent No. 2, with whom she had been in a relationship, drove her to his home under the pretext of going elsewhere, forcibly took her inside, removed her clothes, beat her with a belt and touched her inappropriately. Respondent No. 2 was initially charged, among other things, under Section 366 IPC (kidnapping/abducting a woman to compel marriage or illicit intercourse), but the Sessions Court discharged him of that charge, and the Bombay High Court upheld the discharge. The appellant (the complainant) challenged that discharge order before the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that mere abduction is not enough to attract Section 366 IPC: the prosecution must show the accused intended to compel the woman into marriage, or to force or seduce her into illicit intercourse, or knew this was likely. Examining the record, the Court found that the allegations of molestation and inappropriate touching were added only at a later stage, while the core, contemporaneously witnessed fact (by a watchman) was only that Respondent No. 2 forcibly took her to his house, not that he intended forced marriage or illicit intercourse, especially since the two were already in a known relationship. The Court agreed with the High Court that the Section 366 charge could not be sustained on these facts and was, at best, an afterthought layered onto what appeared to be a relationship gone wrong. The appeal was dismissed and the discharge upheld, but the Court directed the trial court to conclude the pending trial (on the remaining charges) within six months, clarifying that its observations were limited to the applicability of Section 366 only and that the trial court must decide the rest of the case on its own merits.

Lesson Learnt

A criminal charge under provisions like Section 366 IPC requires proof of the specific intent the statute demands (here, intent to compel marriage or illicit intercourse): forcibly taking someone somewhere, by itself, does not automatically satisfy a charge that requires a further, distinct criminal purpose.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

More rulings in Criminal Law

Criminal LawSupreme Court of India

Charming Rupon v. State of Meghalaya

The Supreme Court acquitted the accused, finding the prosecution's case riddled with serious doubt. Both the victim and her cousin (a key witness) admitted in cross-examination that they could not identify the accused and that his name had been supplied to them by the victim's mother, raising a strong suspicion of tutoring, especially since the victim admitted she had been coached by the public prosecutor before testifying. The mother's own conduct (not reacting urgently despite being told of the assault, and material facts missing from the belated FIR) was found "unnatural." A crucial witness, the school teacher whose disclosure triggered the FIR, was never examined, without explanation, warranting an adverse inference against the prosecution. The Court also noted that two medical witnesses were never meaningfully cross-examined because the defence counsel was absent on the relevant dates, and that the trial court had wrongly brushed aside credible alibi evidence led by the accused.

Decided 9 Oct 2026Read case
Criminal LawSupreme Court of India

Ramkrushna Prahllad Dongardive v. The State of Maharashtra

The Supreme Court restored the trial court's acquittal. It found that the prosecution never produced the original cashbooks, daily registers, or audit reports that would have actually proven the appellant was entrusted with and misappropriated the money: the investigating officer himself admitted these documents were never shown to him despite being asked for. The department also failed to produce records the appellant had specifically sought in his own defence. Separately, the search and seizure of documents from the appellant's house was legally doubtful, since both independent witnesses to the seizure turned hostile and denied knowing its contents, and the mandatory procedural safeguards for such a seizure were not followed. The Court also flagged that the High Court convicted the appellant for the very first time on appeal without ever hearing him on the question of sentence, which the law required it to do.

Decided 8 Oct 2026Read case
Criminal LawDelhi High Court

Gurpreet Singh vs. State (NCT of Delhi)

The Court accepted that the order recalling the proclaimed offender status be placed on record. Noting that the complainant was untraceable and the prosecution itself raised no serious objection to anticipatory bail, the Court found no reason to deny the applicant liberty. It granted anticipatory bail, directing release on a personal bond of Rs. 20,000 with one surety in the event of arrest.

Decided 7 Oct 2026Read case
Criminal LawDelhi High Court

Mukesh Rani vs. Narcotics Control Bureau

The Court noted the investigation was complete, the chargesheet was filed, the co-accused had already been granted bail, and the combined quantity recovered (1.976 kg) still fell short of the "commercial quantity" threshold under the NDPS Act. With ten witnesses yet to be examined and no indication the trial would conclude quickly, the Court found continued detention unnecessary and granted regular bail on a personal bond of Rs. 50,000 with standard conditions.

Decided 7 Oct 2026Read case
Criminal LawDelhi High Court

Aakash vs. State Govt. of NCT of Delhi and Anr.

The Court noted that all prosecution witnesses, including the complainant and the guest house manager, had already been examined, and that a co-accused in the same FIR had already been granted bail. Given the complainant's own testimony about voluntary association with the petitioner and the completed trial evidence, the Court found the overall facts favoured bail. It granted regular bail on a personal bond of Rs. 50,000 with standard conditions (reporting to police weekly, not influencing witnesses, providing address/mobile details).

Decided 7 Oct 2026Read case
Criminal LawDelhi High Court

Kundan Kumar vs. State NCT of Delhi & Anr.

The Court relied on earlier Delhi High Court rulings holding that whether a broken promise of marriage was "false" from the outset (criminal) or a mere "breach" (not criminal) is a question for trial, not something requiring custodial interrogation. Noting the investigation was complete and the applicant had no prior criminal record, the Court granted regular bail on a personal bond of Rs. 25,000 with conditions, clarifying the order was not an opinion on the merits.

Decided 7 Oct 2026Read case