The Allahabad High Court, while dismissing a bail application filed by a man accused of trafficking his 14-year-old daughter for money, observed that empowerment of children who are victims of sexual offences is an imperative necessity to remove the barriers in their search for justice and the same can be achieved by the fruition of their statutory rights.
Brief Facts:
The present bail application was filed by a man accused of trafficking his 14-year-old daughter for money. He was accused under Sections 376, 120B I.P.C., and Section 16/17 of the POCSO Act.
Observations of the Court:
The court noted that the victim had not been apprised of her rights to a support person and a legal counsellor, and the records do not depict the appointment of a support person or legal aid/counsel for a victim. The status of grant entitlements of the victim under the POCSO Act is also absent in the records of the State, which assumes importance in view of the fact that the victim is the daughter of the applicant.
The court stated that the victims under the POCSO Act are entitled to various support systems like support persons, legal aid, medical care, counselling services, and other beneficial schemes of the State Government, and the child victims of sexual abuse are the most vulnerable class of citizens. Further, the court observed that the realisation of the statutory rights of child victims of sexual offences under the POCSO Act is the key to empowering them to engage with the legal process on a fair footing, and the statutory support systems enhance the capacity of the said victims to interface with officials and secure their rights and further the empowerment of children who are victims of sexual offences is an imperative necessity to remove the barriers in their search for justice. And the same can be achieved by fruition of their statutory rights.
The court further observed that the victims' rights and entitlements under the POCSO Act can be realised at the bail stage and during trials only by bringing the concerned statutory authorities, such as the Child Welfare Committee (C.W.C.), medical authorities, and police authorities, within the scope of the jurisdiction of the learned magistrates/learned trial courts. Further, the court stated that the authorities must apprise the trial court of how victims' rights under the POCSO Act have been implemented. The Court noted that the trial courts are legally obligated to consider the said reports, make relevant inquiries from the said competent authorities, and record their satisfaction with victims' access to their entitlements and support systems under the POCSO Act.
The court observed that the victim is a minor who is 14 years of age. The applicant is the victim's father. The victim has identified the applicant as the principal offender who trafficked her for money. The victim is vulnerable. The offence is grave. There is the likelihood that the applicant had committed the offence, and thus, no case for bail is made out.
The decision of the Court:
The court dismissed the application.
Case Title: Rajendra Prasad vs State of U.P. and Ors.
Coram: Hon’ble Mr Justice Ajay Bhanot
Case No.: Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 30292 of 2024
Advocate for the Petitioner: M.P. Srivastava, Manoj Kumar Kushwaha
Advocate for the Respondent: G.A.
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