Uttar Pradesh: The Allahabad High Court has ruled that if a woman facilitates the act of rape with a group of people, she can be prosecuted for gang rape under section 376D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The court dismissed an application filed by a woman challenging a summoning order passed by the additional district and sessions judge to face trial under sections 376D and 212 of IPC in connection with an alleged rape case of a 15-year-old girl. The court rejected the plea that a woman cannot be prosecuted for gang rape and stated that the argument is not correct as per the amended provisions of sections related to rape. While section 375 of IPC states that a woman cannot commit rape, the same is not the case with section 376D.
Alleged Rape and Kidnapping of 15-Year-Old Girl
The alleged incident took place in June 2015, and the girl’s father filed an FIR against unknown persons in July 2015 under sections 363 and 366 of IPC. In her statement before the court under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the victim stated that the applicant was involved in the alleged incident. The applicant was not named in the charge sheet, but the father of the victim filed an application under section 319 of CrPC for summoning the applicant, which the court allowed.
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Victim’s Testimony Implicates the Applicant in Alleged Incident
The court noted that the non-ambiguous language of section 375 of IPC specifies that only a man can commit rape. However, section 376D of IPC does not make such a specification and includes the provision for prosecuting a woman who facilitates the act of rape with a group of people. The court emphasized that the provisions related to rape were amended in 2013, and a woman can be prosecuted for gang rape if she facilitates the act of rape with a group of people.
Applicant to Face Trial for Gang Rape and Harboring Offender
In conclusion, the Allahabad High Court’s ruling stated that if a woman facilitates the act of rape with a group of people, she can be prosecuted for gang rape under section 376D of IPC. This ruling was made in view of the amended provisions related to rape, which were updated in 2013. Although section 375 of IPC specifies that only a man can commit rape, the same is not the case with section 376D. The court dismissed an application filed by a woman challenging a summoning order passed by the additional district and sessions judge to face trial under sections 376D and 212 of IPC in connection with an alleged rape case of a 15-year-old girl.
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