Youth acquitted of rape charges after girl turns hostile

A Delhi court has acquitted a youth of the charge of raping a 17-year-old girl after a false of promise of marriage as the alleged victim and her mother turned hostile.
Additional Sessions Judge Rajneesh Kumar Gupta acquitted the youth, a Delhi resident, after noting that the girl and her mother did not support the charges made by the police against him.
"PW1 (girl) and PW3 (girl's mother) have not supported the case of the prosecution. The girl has been cross examined, but no such material has been come on record which would support the case of prosecution.
"No incriminating evidence has been come on record against the accused...The prosecution has failed to prove its case against the accused, hence he is acquitted of the charge," the court said.

It also noted that the girl's mother had taken her to the police station out of anger as she did not approve of her friendship with the youth.
According to the prosecution, the girl had lodged a complaint against the youth on October 25, 2013, alleging that he had repeatedly established physical relations with her against her consent since 2011.

At her instance, an FIR was filed and the accused was arrested on the charges under section 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of IPC and under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, it said.
The girl, however, changed her statement in court and denied the allegations made against the youth.

The girl's mother also denied the allegations in court saying that when she got to know about her daughter's friendship with the youth, she got angry and took her to the police station to file a complaint against him.
The accused had pleaded not guilty and claimed trial.