Women Lawyers Files Petition in Apex Court Challenging MP High Court’s Bail Condition Asking Man Accused of Sexual Assault to Get Rakhi Tied by the Victim

(Judicial Quest News Network)

Supreme Court Advocate Aparna Bhatt and eight other women lawyers have challenged the July 30 bail condition imposed by Madhya Pradesh High Court where a man accused of sexual assault was asked to get a Rakhi tied on him by the victim.

It is stated that the only one condition in the bail order is challenged.

The petitioners contended that considering the merits of the case, allowing tha said bail condition (tying of Rakhi to the accused) to stand in the interim will be grave miscarriage of justice.

The plea filed by Advocate on record, Pukhrambam Ramesh Kumar, has sought for stay on the condition for bail imposed on July 30.

The point of the bail order granted by Madhya Pradesh High Court is “the applicant along with his wife shall visit the house of the

Complainant with Rakhi thread / band on 03rd August, 2020 at 11:00

Am with a box of sweets and request the complainant-Sarda Bai to tie

The Rakhi band to him with the promise to protect her to the best of his ability for all times to come. He shall also tender Rs.11, 000/- (Rs.

Eleven Thousand Only) to the complainant as a customary ritual

Usually offered by the brothers to sisters on such occasion and shall

Also seek her blessings.”

It is said that since the judgement comes from the High Court, the said bail condition amounts to gross trivialization of the trauma suffered by the Complainant in the present case. It is well documented that cases of sexual violence are generally under reported and research has shown that women and families do not seek redressal from the criminal justice system primarily to avoid the secondary trauma that they are subjected to in the process of a criminal trial. Hon’ble High Court erred in imposing a condition that defeated the very purpose of granting bail by directing the alleged perpetrator to establish contact with the victim.

The plea avers that “That the Hon’ble High Court ought to have been cognizant and sensitive to the fact that in a case involving a sexual offence having been committed against a woman, it is immeasurably difficult for the survivor to lodge an FIR and pursue a criminal case against the accused at the threshold. This is for the reason that society and the criminal justice system are not particularly conducive to the plight faced by survivors of sexual offences.

Rakshabandhan is a festival of guardianship between brothers and sisters, the said bail condition amounts to gross trivialization of trauma suffered by the Complainant in the present case.

the present case is of particular concern since it has taken years to undo the damaging approach followed by Courts whereby cases involving sexual offences committed against women are attempted to be compromised by way of marriage or mediation between the accused and the survivor.

A substantial question of law raised in the plea is “whether in a case seeking bail, it is appropriate for a court to impose extraneous conditions which allow contact between the accused and the complainant?”

This particular point leads to the “victimization of the survivors in her own house “the plea further highlights that the alleged offence of outraging the victim’s modesty, in this case, was committed by the accused by forcibly entering the victim’s house.

Petitioners also objected towards the fact that the sexual assault survivor is “forced to accept the sum of Rs11, 000/- as part of the customary ritual of Rakhshabandhan”. As opposed to compensate that may be awarded by courts.

The Challenged will be heard on October 16 by the top Court.