Gagging doesn’t prove intention of sexual assault: Bombay HC

  • | Sunday | 2nd December, 2018

The sessions court had relied on the provisions about intention of the accused to commit sexual assault for holding him guilty. “The accused deserves benefit of doubt and deserves to be acquitted of all charges levelled against him,” the court ruled. The girl's uncle who saw the incident screamed at the accused and he dropped the girl on the road and ran away. Justice Sadhna Jadhav gave the accused benefit of doubt and ordered his release from prison.“There is nothing on record to even remotely indicate that the accused had gagged mouth of the victim on the public road with an intention to commit sexual assault. A sessions court earlier this year convicted the accused and sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment.

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court recently acquitted a 35-year-old Pune man of charges of outraging the modesty and sexually assaulting a four-year-old girl, saying there was no evidence he had gagged the mouth of the victim on a public road with the intention to sexually assault her. Justice Sadhna Jadhav gave the accused benefit of doubt and ordered his release from prison.“There is nothing on record to even remotely indicate that the accused had gagged mouth of the victim on the public road with an intention to commit sexual assault. There is also nothing to indicate that she was bring dragged by force to the house of the victim and therefore it is clear that the prosecution has miserably failed to prove the offence punishable under the POCSO Act,” said the judge. “There is no material on record to infer an intention on the part of the accused that the act was committed with an intention to outrage her modesty or commit sexual assault ,” the court added.The Pune resident was arrested in March 2017 under provisions of the IPC Section 354 for outraging the modesty of a woman and POCSO for sexual assault. The allegation was that the girl had gone with her brother to buy sweets from a shop, when the accused gagged her mouth and attempted to drag her to his house. The girl's uncle who saw the incident screamed at the accused and he dropped the girl on the road and ran away. The accused was subsequently arrested after the girl's mother lodged a complaint with the police. A sessions court earlier this year convicted the accused and sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment. The sessions court had relied on the provisions about intention of the accused to commit sexual assault for holding him guilty. The accused filed an appeal in the high court challenging his conviction. “The accused deserves benefit of doubt and deserves to be acquitted of all charges levelled against him,” the court ruled.

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