The Madras High Court has clarified that repeated sexual relations between an accused and a victim cannot be automatically interpreted as consensual. The court stressed that determining consent requires a deeper examination of the circumstances surrounding the relationship.
“The surrounding circumstances in which the acts occurred, the absence of free and informed choice, and the existence of coercion, deception, or intimidation must all be carefully evaluated before concluding that there was valid consent in the eye of law," said a division bench of Justice N Anand Venkatesh and Justice K K Ramakrishnan on Tuesday.
