Survivor ‘Habituated To Sexual Intercourse, Consenting Party’: HC Acquits Man Convicted Under POCSO
The Chhattisgarh High Court has acquitted a man convicted of repeated rape under the POCSO Act. The court noted the relationship was consensual and the survivor was "habituated to sexual intercourse."
The Chhattisgarh High Court has acquitted a man who had been convicted of repeated rape under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, ruling that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the survivor was a minor. The court also noted that the relationship was consensual and that the survivor was “habituated to sexual intercourse”.
Justice Arvind Kumar Verma observed that the prosecution failed to establish the age of the alleged minor, and cited both medical evidence and witness statements that indicated the sexual relationship was consensual, Live Law reported.
The man, who had spent nearly six years in jail, was earlier convicted under Section 376(2)(n) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (formerly IPC) for repeated rape and Section 6 of the POCSO Act for sexual assault of a minor.
According to the prosecution, the case dates back to July 2018 when the victim’s father filed a missing person’s complaint stating that his daughter had gone to visit her grandmother on July 8 but did not return. Subsequently, it was discovered that she had left with the accused, and both were located on July 18.
Based on the complaint, a charge sheet was filed and the trial court convicted the man under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the POCSO Act.
However, the High Court found discrepancies in the prosecution’s evidence regarding the victim’s age. The date of birth recorded in her school register—10 April 2001—was not supported by any primary documentation or ossification test. The victim herself stated her date of birth as 10 April 2000, contradicting the prosecution’s claim, as per Live Law.
The court cited a 2011 Supreme Court ruling and held that school admission records, without corroboration by the person who made the entry, amounted to weak evidence.
Girl Said She 'Willingly Left' With Accused, Chhattisgarh High Court Observes
The court also relied on the victim’s own statement in which she confirmed that she “willingly left” with the accused and had threatened to end her life if he did not take her away. She stated that they stayed in a hotel and had consensual intercourse. The medical examination revealed no injuries and noted that the victim was “habituated to sexual intercourse”.
“She is a consenting party and even Doctor PW-09, in her deposition, has stated that she did not find any external or internal injuries on the body of the victim as well as on her private part. The secondary sexual organs were fully developed, and the prosecutrix was habitual of sexual intercourse,” the court observed.
In light of the lack of “legally admissible evidence” regarding the survivor’s age and the consensual nature of the relationship, the High Court set aside the trial court’s conviction.
“He is released forthwith, if not required in any other case,” the court ordered.
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