Merely because sexual abuse resulted in marriage between the victim and the accused or in the birth of a child, it does not mitigate or sanctify the offence of rape, the Delhi High Court has said.
The court was hearing the bail petition of a man accused of kidnapping and raping a 14-year-old girl, who he claimed to have subsequently married in a temple.
Denying bail to the petitioner, Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta said "such incidents of luring a minor and entering into a physical relationship" cannot be treated in a routine manner.
