State of Punjab vs. Gurmit Singh, (1996) 2 SCC 384 (India)

A girl under 18 was abducted and raped, around the time she was taking her matriculation examinations. She was forcibly taken onboard a car, and brought to a tube well khota where she was raped by three men. They detained her overnight, during which she was raped again, and in the morning left at the same place where she was abducted. She then took her examination scheduled that morning, then went home and narrated the crime to her mother. The trial court disbelieved the testimony of the girl, observing that she did not raise an alarm even though they passed a bus station when she was being abducted, there was no corroborating testimony, the reporting of the crime was delayed. On appeal, the court held that in sexual offenses delay in the lodging of the complaint can be due to variety of reasons particularly the reluctance of the prosecutrix or her family members to go to the police and complain about the incident which concerns the reputation of the prosecutrix and the honor of her family. It is only after giving it a cool thought that a complaint of sexual offense is generally lodged. The appellate court also said that to discredit the prosecutrix for not raising an alarm while the car was passing through the Bus Adda is a travesty of justice. The trial court overlooked the situation in which a poor helpless minor girl had found herself in the company of three desperate young men who were threatening her and preventing her from raising any alarm. On corroboration, the appellate court held that the testimony of the victim in such cases is vital and unless there are compelling reasons which necessitate looking for corroboration of her statement, the courts should find no difficulty to act on the testimony of a victim of sexual assault alone to convict an accused where her testimony inspires confidence and is found to be reliable.