Kerala High Court grants anticipatory bail to two lawyers accused of raping their client

The Kerala High Court recently granted anticipatory bail to two lawyers accused of raping their client..Justice Gopinath P took note of the fact that the client had filed a complaint against the accused only in June 2023 even though she claimed she was sexually abused from the time she had approached one of the lawyers for filing her divorce case before family court in 2021. ."While this itself may not be fatal to the prosecution case, it lends credence to the argument of the learned counsel for the petitioners that the de facto complainant / victim had actually filed a complaint being aggrieved by the fact that she had not received sufficient compensation in the proceedings before the family court," the Court said..The prosecution's case was that two practicing lawyers had sexually abused their client after she approached one of the lawyers for legal help in her divorce case. It is alleged that the said advocate later invited her to a hotel and sexually assaulted her after spiking her drink.It was further alleged that the said advocate promised to buy her a house and take care of her children. The abuse allegedly continued and she was asked to come to Tellicherry where the second lawyer, who was a colleague of the first lawyer, also abused her.Additionally, it was also alleged that the first lawyer recorded nude pictures and videos of the victim on his mobile phone.Both the lawyers were booked for offences under Sections 376 (rape), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 120B (criminal conspiracy), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)..Both lawyers denied the complainant's allegations. They claimed that the victim had filed a police complaint after she failed to get sufficient compensation in her divorce case.They added that the complainant was also aggrieved by the fact that the petitioner-lawyers could not follow through on their offers to give her financial aid to help in educating her child or help her buy a house. .The petitioner-lawyers (accused) added that they eventually agreed to pay ₹3 lakhs to the victim on the advice of their friends and relatives. This amount was transferred to the victim's account as well. The petitioners further submitted that following this, on July 3, 2023, the victim gave a statement to the Kozhikode Police Commissioner that any relationship between her and the petitioners was purely consensual and that she did not wish to prosecute the complaint in any manner..However, the Court was told that she later filed a fresh complaint containing distinct and very serious allegations against the petitioners, pursuant to which a case of rape was registered against them. The accused lawyers have asserted that the relationship between the victim and the accused was consensual and that the arrest and detention of the petitioners (accused) may cause serious prejudice to them and their families..The Court opined that the material on record seemed to support the allegation that the complaint was filed because the complainant was aggrieved that she did not receive sufficient compensation during divorce proceedings. "A cumulative reading of all the complaints preferred by the de facto complainant / victim would indicate that she was abused right from the time she had first approached the 1st petitioner seeking his professional help. However, the first complaint seems to have been filed only on 30-06-2023," the Court reasoned..This factor prompted the Court to grant anticipatory bail to the two accused lawyers, subject to execution of bail bonds of ₹50,000 each.The lawyers were also directed to cooperate with the investigation, to not influence or intimidate any witness or the complainant/ victim. .The petitioners were represented by advocates S Rajeev, V Vinay, MS Aneer, Prerith Philip Joseph, Anilkumar CR, Sarath KP and KS Kiran Krishnan.The State government was represented by Senior Public Prosecutor Vipin Narayan. The complainant was represented by advocate Luke J Chirayil..[Read Order]