Allahabad HC Discharges Congress MP Rakesh Rathore In Rape Case

The Allahabad High Court (Lucknow Bench) has set aside the trial court order framing charges against Congress MP Rakesh Rathore in a rape case, holding that the material collected during the investigation indicated a long-standing consensual relationship between Rathore and the complainant.

Justice Subhash Vidyarthi passed the order on Friday while allowing Rathore's discharge application. Court also quashed the trial court's May 5, 2025 order, which had rejected his plea for discharge and proceeded to frame charges against him.

The case arose from an FIR lodged at the Kotwali police station in Sitapur in January 2025. The complainant had alleged that Rathore raped her in 2020 and subsequently continued a physical relationship with her after assuring her that he would divorce his wife and marry her.

The high court, however, found that the prosecution material did not create a strong suspicion that Rathore had committed the alleged offence.

Circumstances Of Relationship

Court took note of the complainant's own account that she had initially met Rathore at public meetings. According to the material considered by the court, Rathore subsequently offered her political support and an alliance, which she accepted. She was later appointed district women president of the Tailik Mahasangh.

Court said their proximity increased after this.

It also relied on the statement of the complainant's husband, who said Rathore frequently called her to his residence and that she sometimes remained there until late at night.

Taking these circumstances together, court observed: "On the basis of the aforesaid circumstances, the prosecution material indicates a long-standing consensual extramarital relationship between two married and mature adults."

Court said these circumstances were inconsistent with the complainant's allegation that the physical relationship had been established on the basis of a promise of marriage.

Statements Of Family Members Also Considered

The bench also examined statements made by the complainant's husband, her married son and daughter-in-law, who had supported the allegations against Rathore.

However, after considering the prosecution material as a whole, court held that the version presented by the prosecution did not give rise to the level of suspicion required for the criminal case to continue.

Court observed that the circumstances presented in the prosecution case could not, in its view, be accepted by a person of ordinary prudence.

"Continuing criminal proceedings on the basis of such contradictory and unfounded allegations would amount to an abuse of the process of law and result in a failure of justice," court said.

High court's Revisional Jurisdiction

Rathore had approached the high court after the trial court refused to discharge him and subsequently framed charges.

The high court also dealt with the procedural objection concerning its jurisdiction. It held that the framing of charges by the trial court did not prevent it from exercising its revisional jurisdiction to examine whether the discharge proceedings had been dealt with lawfully.

Court consequently set aside the May 5, 2025 order and allowed Rathore's application for discharge.

Case title: Rakesh Rathore v. State of U.P. & Another

Order date: September 25, 2026

Bench: Justice Subhash Vidyarthi