The court ruled that the mother’s role in encouraging the act made her an accomplice to the crime. The accused man was convicted of rape, while his mother was charged with abetment to rape under Section 109 of IPC.
Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has ruled that a woman can be held guilty of encouraging rape, even if she is not the main accused in the case.
The court stated that under Section 109 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), any person who helps or encourages a crime is equally responsible under the law. Since the crime occurred on August 21, 2022, the court applied the IPC, as the new criminal laws had not yet come into effect.
A bench of Justices Pramod Agarwal and Prashant Gupta was hearing a case related to the rape of a woman in Bhopal’s Chhola Mandir police station area. According to the prosecution, the accused’s mother and brother pressured the survivor into a physical relationship with the accused, which led to the crime.
The court ruled that the mother’s role in encouraging the act made her an accomplice to the crime. The accused man was convicted of rape, while his mother was charged with abetment to rape under Section 109 of IPC.
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As per the survivor’s complaint, her neighbor had proposed marriage to her. When she visited his house, his mother and brother sent her into a room, where the accused locked the door and raped her. Later, he refused to marry her.
The accused was charged under multiple IPC sections, including:
- Section 376 & 376(2) – Rape
- Section 506 – Criminal intimidation
- Section 34 – Common intention
His mother was charged under Section 109 (abetment to rape) for encouraging the crime.
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Clarifying the court’s reasoning, government advocate CM Tiwari stated:
“Since the mother encouraged the survivor to get into a relationship, the court found her equally responsible. The accused was convicted of rape and the woman was considered an equal participant in the crime.”
Case Title: Prashant Gupta v. State of M.P., Criminal Revision No. 4796 of 2023
Advocates who appeared in this case:
Shri Pradeep Kumar Naveriya, Counsel for the Applicants
Shri C.M. Tiwari, Government Advocate, Counsel for the Respondent No. 1/State
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