Consensual relationship turning sour not criminal offence, Karnataka HC quashes case against doctor

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a doctor accused of engaging in sexual intercourse on a false promise of marriage, observing that the breakdown of a consensual relationship does not automatically constitute a criminal offence.

In an order dated October 16, Justice M Nagaprasanna observed that the case highlighted the potential misuse of Section 69 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which criminalises sexual intercourse obtained through deceitful means, including a false promise of marriage.

The case stems from a relationship between two doctors who were medical students at different colleges in Mangaluru. They were reportedly in a relationship from 2017 to 2024, but did not marry. According to the woman's complaint, caste differences and the man's decision to marry another person prevented the marriage from taking place.

The woman approached the Mangaluru women's police station in 2025, following which a criminal case was registered, and a chargesheet was filed against the man. He subsequently approached the High Court, arguing that their relationship had been consensual and that he had not induced her into it through a deceptive promise of marriage. The complainant disputed his contentions, TOI reported. 

While examining the matter, the court noted that Section 69 of the BNS came into force on July 1, 2024, by which time the couple had already been in a relationship for several years.

The court also referred to Supreme Court rulings in the Pramod Kumar Navaratna and Shailesh Bhai Govindbhai Makhwana cases to explain the distinction between a genuine relationship that fails and one founded on deception. For a false promise of marriage to constitute an offence, the promise must have been made with no intention of fulfilling it from the very beginning.

The court observed that the fact that a relationship ends without marriage is not, by itself, sufficient to establish criminal liability. The intention behind the alleged promise is a key consideration.

The High Court has now quashed the proceedings, observing that a consensual relationship turning sour does not, by itself, amount to an offence.

Finding that the allegations, even if accepted as stated, did not disclose an offence under the BNS or the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the High Court quashed the criminal proceedings against the doctor.