On Monday, the Uttarakhand High Court upheld the conviction and sentence awarded to a man under the POCSO Act, affirming a 10-year rigorous imprisonment imposed by the trial court.
The case arose from a judgment of the district court in October 2021, whereby the accused, a resident of Udham Singh Nagar, was convicted for raping a minor girl under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Aggrieved by the conviction and sentence, the accused preferred a criminal appeal before the High Court.
The counsel for the Appellant contended that the prosecution failed to conclusively establish that the victim was a minor. It was argued that the school records relied upon for determining the date of birth lacked a proven basis. The defence further submitted that the absence of medical age determination weakened the prosecution’s case and also questioned the reliability of the FIR and the testimony of the victim.
The prosecution maintained that the victim’s minority stood duly established through school records produced during trial. It was asserted that the evidence on record, including the victim’s testimony, sufficiently proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.
Justice Ashish Naithani observed that school records produced during trial carry evidentiary value and can be relied upon for determining the age of the victim. The Court noted that the defence failed to present any substantial rebuttal against the age-related documents and upheld the finding that the victim was a minor. It further observed that medical evidence is corroborative in nature, and the absence of physical injuries or a conclusive medical opinion does not negate the occurrence of sexual assault where the testimony of the victim is reliable.
The High Court dismissed the criminal appeal and upheld the conviction and sentence of 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment awarded by the district court, holding that the prosecution had proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.
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