Farooqui verdict by HC redefines 'consent' in rape cases, puts victims in dock

The Delhi High Court on Monday acquitted ‘Peepli Live’ co-director Mahmood Farooqui in a 2015 rape case and set aside his seven year jail term.

The judgment authored and delivered by Justice Ashutosh Kumar handed out an elaborate explanation of the concept of “consent” in sexual assault cases and how “gender equations” play a vital role.

But the reasoning cited in the verdict defies judicial propriety and precedents laid down by the Supreme Court and various high courts in a body of previous judgments.

According to Justice Kumar, “there could be myriad circumstances which can surround a consent and it may not necessarily always mean yes in case of yes or no in case of no".