The Allahabad High Court in a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) case of the alleged rape of a minor girl ruled that grabbing the breasts and snapping the pajama strings of the victim do not constitute rape or attempt to rape but a serious sexual assault.
According to the news agency ANI, the accused, who have been identified as Pawan and Akash, allegedly grabbed the breasts of the victim (11), tearing her pajama string, and attempted to drag her beneath a culvert. Subsequently, the accused fled from the scene after a passer-by came to her rescue.
The incident is of Uttar Pradesh’s Kasganj and the case is registered at Patiyali police station.
Petitioners Akash, Pawan, and Ashok were initially called to be tried under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 18 of the POCSO Act. Now, the court has directed that the accused should be tried under Section 9/10 (serious sexual assault) of the POCSO Act along with the minor charge of Section 354-B IPC (assault or use of criminal force with intent to disrobe).
Further, ANI reported that a single bench of Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra has modified the summons order of Special Judge POCSO Court of Kasganj. The court has ordered a fresh summon and said that the summons issued on the charge of rape is not legal.
According to Hindustan Times, Ashok the father of Pawan and the third petitioner, has been summoned under Sections 504 and 506 of the IPC. He allegedly abused and threatened the victim when she approached him after the incident.
Section 504 of the IPC addresses “intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace’ and section 506 of the IPC deals with “criminal intimidation of the IPC.
Talking to the news agency, Advocate Vikas Pahwa said, “This gives a bad signal to the entire criminal justice society where we feel that if somebody commits an offense, he will be punished. The Courts have to be a bit cautious of laying down the law. When we talk about High Courts and the Supreme Court, we talk about laying down the law…We have to be a bit careful dealing with such sensitive issues.”
Furthermore, Rajya Sabha MP and former chief of NCW, Rekha Sharma, also talking to ANI, weighed in on the matter and said, “If the judges are not sensitized, then what will the women and children do? They should see the intention behind an act. NCW should go to the Supreme Court against this. Judges should be told that they can’t make such judgments. This is totally wrong, and I am against it.”
| On Allahabad HC’s observation that “Holding breast, breaking pyjama’s string is not a crime of rape”, Rajya Sabha MP & former chief of NCW, Rekha Sharma says,” If the judges are not sensitised, then what will the women and children do? They should see the intention…
— ANI (@ANI)
Stay informed on all the , real-time updates, and follow all the important headlines in and on Zee News.
