In view of the increasing cases of women blackmailing men with whom they are in live-in relationship and forcing them into marriage or coercing them to cough up large sum of money in case they refuse, the State Police department has decided to be circumspect in the matter of lodging FIRs under Section 376 of IPC against the accused.
Police must not act in a hurry despite being coaxed by the women who insist on such FIRs be lodged, said a senior police official. “All such cases being brought thus do not amount to rape cases. A woman cannot claim that she has been raped after living with the accused for years. Police must show discrimination when it comes to lodging FRIs under Section 376 of IPC. This section is meant for alleged rape cases when things are clear while such cases must be thoroughly investigated before conclusions are drawn,” he added.
Recently, a case was reported in Haridwar district in which a woman who had been in live-in relationship with her boyfriend for around two years approached police to have an FIR lodged under Section 376 of IPC against him. She alleged that her friend had sexually exploited her for around two years. Statistics revealed that such cases have been reported against some cops in the State too.
State Director General of Police BS Sidhu said police would not allow Section 376 of IPC being used indiscriminately. “If we do so we would be playing into the hands of the women who insist on that either out of vindictiveness or to make their live-in relation partners to shell out large amounts of money. We have come across some cases-though they are few- where the women concerned make it a profession to target the affluent and to milk them for money. Police are known to come under heavy pressure from the women concerned to lodge FIRs under Section 376. This is unfortunate as some genuine rape cases remain unaddressed because of this,” he added. Records of such black-mailing cases reveal that with complaints under section of rape dogging the male accused, several of them commit suicide. Many are sent to jail. Some sell their property. Some lose jobs and family life too.
