The North Goa Fast Track Special Court has discharged a 30‑year‑old man accused of rape and criminal intimidation, finding that a criminal offence cannot be established solely because a registered marriage later soured or one party sought to annul it.

The prosecution, through the Ponda Police Station, alleged that the accused had intercourse without consent and threatened the complainant between July 13, 2024 and August 6, 2024 in Ponda. The complainant stated that the first encounter occurred on July 13, 2024, after both parties had signed papers for their civil marriage. Despite alleging that the encounter was non‑consensual, she continued with the process, and the couple completed their civil marriage registration on August 7, 2024.

The complainant later approached the police after the accused refused to participate in a religious ceremony and took steps to cancel the civil registration, alleging she had been deceived by a false promise of marriage.

In its discharge order, the court observed that because both parties are of Goan origin, they became legally husband and wife under the law following their civil marriage on August 7, 2024.

The court held that allegations of non‑consensual acts during the subsistence of a valid civil marriage do not, under current Indian law, constitute a separate offence of rape.

The court further noted that the accused had fulfilled his promise by legally marrying the complainant. A subsequent refusal to perform religious rites or an attempt to cancel the registration may have civil or moral consequences, but it does not retroactively convert prior physical relations into rape.

Relying on Supreme Court precedents, the court observed that if the sexual acts had truly been forcible, the complainant would unlikely have continued the relationship and completed the marriage without raising any grievance. The court therefore discharged the accused of all charges.