Allahabad HC: Refusal to Marry After 4-Year Live-In Relationship Not Rape

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that a man’s refusal to marry his partner after a four-year consensual live-in relationship does not amount to a cognisable offence. The court dismissed a woman’s plea alleging rape.

Justice Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal, in his order dated 8 September 2025, observed that when two competent adults cohabit as live-in partners for years, it must be presumed that they voluntarily chose such an arrangement with full awareness of its consequences.

The bench stated: “If two able-minded adults reside together as a live-in couple for more than a couple of years and cohabit with each other, a presumption would arise that they voluntarily chose that kind of a relationship fully aware of its consequences. Therefore, the allegation that such a relationship was entered into because there was a promise of marriage is unworthy of acceptance.”

The case was filed by a woman employed at a Tehsil office in Mahoba, who alleged that her colleague had engaged in sexual relations with her under the promise of marriage but later backed out. Her complaint was dismissed earlier by the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mahoba, on 17 August 2024.

While her counsel argued that refusal to marry amounted to breach of promise vitiating consent, the man’s lawyer, Sunil Choudhary, countered that the relationship was consensual, which the woman’s own statements confirmed. He also highlighted that the matter had already been settled before departmental officers.

The court noted that their relationship was openly known among colleagues and continued for four years without coercion, rejecting the allegation of rape.