Patna HC: Lying on woman, covering mouth not rape attempt

Hindustan Times · india

The Patna High Court has ruled that merely lying on a woman and covering her mouth does not constitute an attempt to commit rape if no act towards penetration is proven. A single-judge bench, hearing an appeal against a 2013 conviction, found the evidence insufficient to establish that the accused had moved beyond the preparatory stage. The court cited Supreme Court observations that indecent assaults can be magnified into rape attempts without sufficient proof of intent. Consequently, the court modified the sentence, limiting it to the period already served.