Mumbai, October 15: A 46-year-old man was acquitted in a 30-year-old rape case after the court found that it was consensual sex. The man was accused of kidnapping and raping a 17-year-old girl in 1988. He was then 16-year-old. However, the court observed that the girl had consented for sex and cleared the man of rape charges under IPC Section 378.

"By no stretch of imagination can it be said that the accused of age 16 years enticed the girl of age 17 years from the legal custody of her parents and committed rape on her. No purpose would be served in committing the case before the juvenile board on the ground of age of the accused," the sessions court said, as reported by Times of India.

The girl's father had registered the case in 1988 when he found out about the man's relationship with his daughter. The father had alleged that her daughter went missing on January 23 and the accused, who was their neighbour earlier, might have enticed her. He had claimed her daughter was found at the accused house in Andheri on January 30.

In her statement to the police, the girl, however, had said that she went with the accused on January 23, 1988, at about 7:00 pm. He then talked to her 'sweetly' and took her to his native place in Gujarat. The girl had said they had consensual sex there. Taking note of the girl's statement, the court exonerated the accused.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 15, 2018 03:52 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).