A man facing trial for allegedly kidnapping a 15-year-old girl in 2007 has been acquitted by a Delhi court after the girl changed her statement, saying that her mother had lodged a false complaint against him.

Additional Sessions Judge Rajneesh Kumar Gupta Vijay Balmiki, a west Delhi resident, free of the offence of kidnapping a woman to compel her for marriage under section 366 of the IPC and held that the girl’s testimony was inconsistent and unreliable. “Prosecution witness 2 (girl) has made inconsistent statements…These inconsistent statements create a doubt in the credibility of her testimony and hence it does not inspire confidence and she is not a reliable witness.

“Accordingly, the prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt against the accused (Vijay) andhe is acquitted of the charge for the offence punishable under section 366 of the IPC,” the judge said.

According to the prosecution, on September 19, 2007, when the mother of the girl returned home from work she could not find her. Thereafter, she lodged a missing complaint of her daughter. She told the police that she received a call from Vijay, her neighbour who told her that the girl was with him.

Vijay, who was a friend of the girl’s brother, was in love with her and took her away on the pretext of marriage, according to the prosecution.

The girl initially supported her mother’s statement, but later retracted and said that she too was in love with Vijay. it said. The court noted that the girl went to Vijay’s house and started living with him on her own will. Vijay had pleaded innocence, saying that he was falsely implicated in the case.

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App.