Supreme Court cautions couple on pre-marital physical relations: ‘Boy and girl are strangers before marriage’

In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Monday made an oral remark that a boy and a girl are strangers before marriage and hence there should be circumspection before indulging in a pre-marital physical relationship, reported LiveLaw.

The top court’s remarks came in a case involving the bail plea of a man accused of rape on the false pretext of marriage.

A bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan was hearing the case.

The man allegedly lured the complainant by assuring her that he would marry her, even though he was already married and later married another woman, said the LiveLaw report.

The woman, aged about 30 years, met the man on a matrimonial platform in 2022. He allegedly established physical relations with her on the promise of marriage on multiple occasions in Delhi and later in Dubai.

“Maybe we are old-fashioned, but before marriage, a boy and a girl are strangers. Whatever may be the thick and thin of their relationship, we fail to understand how they can be indulging in a physical relationship before marriage. Maybe we are old fashioned…You must be very careful, nobody should believe anybody before marriage,” Justice BV Nagarathna said.

The complainant has also alleged that she travelled to Dubai on his insistence, where he established physical relations with her and also recorded intimate videos without her consent. He further threatened her to circulate those videos if she resisted.

Later, she learnt that he got married for the second time on 19 January 2024 in Punjab.

During the hearing, Justice Nagarathna asked why the woman travelled to Dubai to meet the man.

The justice added that these cases are not suitable for trial and conviction and suggested that the parties be referred to mediation.

“She should not have gone before marriage if she was so strict about it. We will send them to mediation. These are not cases which are to be tried and convicted when there is a consensual relationship,” Justice Nagarathna said.

The case was posted for Wednesday to explore the possibility of a settlement.

In 2025, the sessions court and the Delhi High Court had rejected the accused’s bail pleas.

On 18 November 2025, the High Court had dismissed his bail plea, stating that the allegations prima facie indicate that the promise of marriage was false from inception, particularly as the man was already married and had married again in January 2024.