Indian society at large does not recognize such relationships, and when they end, the woman is left with no option but to lodge a case against her live-in partner, the Court said.
"If a woman tricks a man under false promise of marriage, she can't be prosecuted. But a man can be prosecuted for the same offence. What kind of law is this?" said Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque.
The Court doubted the story of the prosecutrix due to embellishment in her FIR, a long gap before reporting the incident, and the WhatsApp messages exchanged by the parties.
The Supreme Court set aside an order of the Jharkhand High Court which granted bail in a POCSO Act case citing a “love affair” between the accused and the prosecutrix.