A man in Kolkata was accused of rape five years ago. The case went to court. The woman told the court that she had filed an FIR due to a misunderstanding. The accused had to spend 51 days in jail. The court acquitted the accused because the prosecution failed to prove the charges.

A man in West Bengal was accused of rape and fraud five years ago. The case went on for five years and last week the accused was acquitted. When the case was registered, he also had to spend 51 days in jail. The woman who filed the case told the court that she had filed the FIR due to misunderstanding.

The case is of 24 November 2020. The woman lodged an FIR against the man at Bartola police station. She also testified before the judicial magistrate. During the test identification parade, she also identified the man accusing him of rape.

Spent the night at the hotel

In her complaint, the woman had alleged that she met the accused in January 2017. He proposed to her and promised to marry her. Then the two got into a relationship. The woman alleged that the man promised her that he would marry her on November 23, 2020. He took her to a hotel and spent the night with her. He got physical with her. But the next morning, he said that he would not be able to marry her and ran away. The woman lodged a complaint with the police the very next day.

The accused remained in jail for 51 days

The accused man was arrested by the police on November 25, 2020. He remained in jail and got bail after 51 days on January 14, 2021. In March 2021, the police filed a chargesheet against the man in court for rape and fraud. The trial of the case began in March 2025. The complainant woman was the first to testify in the court.

What did the woman say in court

On March 20, 2025, the woman told Judge Anindya Banerjee that she had an affair with the man about 4 to 5 years ago and had physical relations with him. There was a misunderstanding between them, due to which, she filed a complaint against him. The FIR was filed due to misunderstanding. She does not remember anything about the complaint. The woman also said that the complaint was written by a friend of hers. She does not even know what was written in it.

Police claim and what the court said

The police claimed that the woman had made a written complaint to the police. She had also recorded her statement before the magistrate under section 164 of CrPC. The accused was also identified in the identification parade. There was also the detail of the hotel where the man had spent the night with the woman. But Judge Banerjee was not satisfied. In his six-page order, he wrote, 'It appears from the evidence of the woman that her only allegation against the accused was that he had physical relations with her. It appears that two adults had consensual sex.

The judge said that the accused had sexual relations with the woman, it could not be proved that it was rape. Acquitting the accused, the judge said that no other prosecution witness supported the prosecution's case. The prosecution has miserably failed to prove the charge under section 417/376 of IPC. The accused is entitled to the benefit of doubt. I do not find him guilty. If we do so, we may have to face serious consequences.

PC: NBT