The Delhi High Court has stated that teenage love and "such offences" are in a "legal grey area," and it is disputed if this can be classified as an offence.
The court stated that it has come across several situations in which girls over the age of 17 elope with men of their choice, and when discovered, the victim's parents force them to amend their statement to the police.
"The police also record such statements at a later stage which are completely contrary to the earlier statements. Majority of the statements recorded under Section 164 CrPC also do not conform to the victim's earlier statements given by the victim under Section 161 CrPC which is contradictory," Justice Subramonium Prasad of the Delhi High Court said, as reported by PTI.
The court further said, "Teenage love and such offences fall in a legal grey area and it is debatable if that can be actually categorised as an offence. This court at the moment is not commenting as to whether the offence has been committed by the petitioner (accused) or not.”
These statements were made by the high court while granting bail to a 22-year-old man accused of abducting a 17-year-old girl.
"The petitioner has been in custody since April 19, 2022. A chargesheet has been filed. Conditions can be imposed restraining the petitioner from making contact with the victim. Keeping the petitioner further in custody will be detrimental to the future of the petitioner who is about 22 years of age," it said.
More about the case
The underage girl's father filed a complaint in January 2022, stating that the accused misled and took his daughter with him.
The girl was rescued in March 2022.
In her initial statement, the girl stated that after alerting her mother, she proceeded to the house of a friend, where she had called the accused to meet.
They subsequently got tickets to Madhya Pradesh and began living there in rented housing.
She explained that when she learnt that her father had filed a criminal case, they took a train back to Delhi and called the police.
However, after 23 days, the girl submitted another statement, claiming that the accused warned her that her parents were looking for her and would murder her if she returned to her home.
She added that the accused transported her to Madhya Pradesh and they began living there in a flat, but he refused to take her to her parents.
She said that his father and uncle came to Madhya Pradesh, transported them to Bihar, detained her, gagged her lips, and created fraudulent documents for their court marriage, which was sworn in.
She stated that the man's father later took the girl to Delhi and turned her over to the police.
While granting bail to the accused, the high court noted that "material improvement" had been made in the girl's second statement, which was recorded 23 days after her first.
