- In Mukish v. State, the Delhi High Court has upheld the life imprisonment sentence given to a man for committing rape of a 4 year old minor girl.
- A division bench consisting of Justices Mukta Gupta and Mini Pushkarna was hearing an appeal filed by the accused, against the order passed by the POCSO Judge giving him a sentence of life imprisonment.
- The Court convicted the accused under section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and gave him a sentence of life Imprisonment and imposed Rs.10,000.
- In this case, the allegations raised against the accused were that he committed aggravated penetrative sexual assault upon the 4 year old on 14th March, 2014 in a house in the city of Badarpur.
- A total of around 15 witnesses were examined by the prosecution and the accused was charged under section 6 of the POCSO Act.
- The contention of the appellant was that the prosecution did not successfully establish his guilt and therefore, the burden of proof has not been discharged by them.
- Furthermore, the appellant accused contended that the testimony of the 15 prosecution witnesses do not inspire any confidence and a conviction should not be awarded on the basis of such evidence.
- The appellant also argued that since the victim child was not examined, the sentence awarded to him is unjustified.
- The Court noted that the contention that the victim was not examined does in no way affect the prosecution's case as she was hardly 4 years old when the incident took place and was not in a position to give a statement.
- The Court agreed with the trial Court in holding that the victim's age and her lack of maturity to understand as to what has happened with her, is a justified reason why she was not arrayed as a witness.
- The Ld. Court further held that the accused has committed a heinous crime of rape on a four year old minor. There can be no justification in reducing the sentence awarded to him.
- Accordingly, the plea of the accused was dismissed.
"Loved reading this piece by Megha Nautiyal?
Join LAWyersClubIndia's network for daily News Updates, Judgment Summaries, Articles, Forum Threads, Online Law Courses, and MUCH MORE!!"
Join LAWyersClubIndia's network for daily News Updates, Judgment Summaries, Articles, Forum Threads, Online Law Courses, and MUCH MORE!!"
