High Court granted relief to a man accused of rape of a woman he late married.
The Delhi High Court recently ruled that if a first information report (FIR) is filed before the new criminal laws come into effect, any anticipatory bail plea filed on or after July 1, 2024 (when the new laws take effect), will be processed under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) [Prince v State of Govt of NCT of Delhi & Ors].
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani noted that a straightforward reading of Section 531(2)(a) of the BNSS indicates that any application, appeal, or proceeding must be handled under the BNSS if filed on or after July 1.
“ the present petition has been filed under the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 (CrPC), in the opinion of this court, on a plain reading of section 531(2)(a) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 (‘BNSS’), proceedings are to be “… …disposed of, continued, held or made… …” in accordance with the CrPC only in cases where such proceedings, viz.“… …any appeal, application, trial, inquiry or investigation… …”, was pending immediately before the date on which the BNSS came into force, i.e. 01.07.2024,” the Court said.
The single judge made this observation while reviewing an anticipatory bail request from a man named Prince in a rape case. Prince was accused of rape by a woman with whom he had sexual relations, followed by marriage the next day. He claimed that the woman coerced him into the marriage and sought to have the marriage annulled.
After reviewing the case, the Court acknowledged that the petition should have been filed under BNSS but chose to handle it under the new law to avoid delays. The Court instructed the police not to take any action against the accused. Prince was represented by advocates Shiv Kumar Gautam, Gaurav Singh, Rohit Gupta, and Shanu. The State was represented by Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Utkarsh, along with advocates Sachin Khari and Sarika Khari.
