Acquittal for Abduction, Conviction for Rape on the Same Evidence: Supreme Court Sets Aside Conviction Under Section 376 IPC

Case Name: Paramjit Singh Bedi v. State of Punjab

Date of Judgment: 25 September 2026

Citation: 2026 INSC 1054

Bench: Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice Atul S. Chandurkar.

Held: A conviction for rape may rest on the sole testimony of the prosecutrix if that testimony inspires the court’s confidence. On the facts of this case, the Supreme Court found material contradictions in her account and held that the prosecution had not proved the charge under Section 376 IPC beyond reasonable doubt. The Court criticised the trial court’s reliance on its moral assessment of the accused’s conduct in place of credible evidence. It also found the trial court’s treatment of the same evidence inconsistent: it had rejected the prosecution’s account when acquitting the accused under Section 366 IPC but relied on it to convict him under Section 376 IPC.

Summary: The prosecution alleged that the appellant took the prosecutrix from Ludhiana to Malerkotla in June 2009 and had sexual intercourse with her against her will. The Sessions Court acquitted him under Section 366 IPC after finding that the prosecution had not proved she was under 18 and that she had accompanied him involuntarily. It nevertheless convicted him of rape and sentenced him to ten years’ rigorous imprisonment; the High Court affirmed that conviction. Reviewing the evidence, the Supreme Court identified contradictions in the prosecutrix’s account, including whether the return journey was by car or train. It held that her testimony, viewed as a whole, did not reliably establish intercourse without consent. The Court applied the provisions of Section 375 IPC as they stood at the time of the alleged events in 2009.

Decision: The Supreme Court allowed the criminal appeal, set aside the Sessions Court and High Court judgments insofar as they convicted and sentenced the appellant under Section 376 IPC, and acquitted him of that charge. The earlier acquittal under Section 366 IPC had not been challenged and had attained finality.