Ahmedabad: Refusing bail to a man accused of molesting his minor daughter, the Gujarat High Court has observed that rape and molestation are a "dark reality" of Indian society. In the judgment passed last month, Justice Samir Dave also cited verses from the Manusmriti and Padma Purana to underline the importance of parents in a person's life.
"Rape or molestation is one such dark reality in the Indian society that devastates a woman's soul, shatters her self-respect and for a few, purges their hope to live. It shakes the insight of a woman or girl who once was a happy person," said Justice Dave in his order on December 16. The judgement copy became available on January 4.
A woman from Devbhumi Dwarka district approached police in January 2022 alleging that her husband had molested their 12-year-old daughter twice. A First Information Report was registered under Indian Penal Code sections 354(a) and 354(b) which deal with molestation, and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act at Vadinar Main police station.
The man was subsequently arrested. Seeking bail for his client, his lawyer advocate Parth Adhyaru argued before the High Court that the allegations were "vague" and resulted from marital discord. The lawyer also pointed out that there was a delay of nearly one month in filing the complaint, and it "suggests that it has been filed after great deliberations, concoctions and fabrications with a view of falsely involve the applicant."
The state opposed the bail plea saying the accused had committed a "very serious crime" and might commit a repeat offence. Citing police investigation, the high court noted that the accused had not only molested his daughter but also expressed desire to marry her when confronted by his wife.
"A daughter looks to her father to protect her from outside evils and when the very same protector rips her apart, the trauma one suffers as a consequence of such an act cannot even be described in simple terms. What a plight of a child who does not even know the seriousness of the offence committed upon her," Justice Dave said.
He then quoted a verse from the Manusmriti, the ancient Hindu legal text, which translates as "An Acharya is greater than ten Upadhyayas, a father is greater than a hundred Acharyas and a mother is greater in glory than a thousand fathers." Citing a verse from the Padma Purana, another scripture, Justice Dave noted, "My father is my Dharma, my father is my heaven, he is the ultimate penance of my life." Rejecting the bail plea, he noted that the prosecution has "clearly established" a prima facie case against the accused. (PTI)
