Mumbai: In a significant development, a special court dealing with the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO), has rejected a bail to a 45-yr-old man observing that medical evidence is not required in every case of rape. Special Judge Preeti Kumar Ghule refused to grant bail to the accused, making the important observation that medical evidence is not necessary in every case of rape.
The case dates back to 2019 when the parents of the girl, 14 at the time, lodged a case against the man at RCF police station in Mumbai for sexually assaulting their daughter after luring her into friendship on Facebook. The parents said the accused gifted her a mobile phone and then exploited her by luring her into marriage.
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The parents alleged that the accused sexually assaulted her at their house when they were away. Following the complaint, the accused was arrested by the police. However, the accused, while seeking bail, told the special POCSO court of the Bombay Sessions Court that the victim refused to undergo a medical examination after the case was registered.
He also claimed that there was inconsistency in the girl's statement. However the court said the victim is a minor and there is a huge age difference between the accused and her and rejected his bail. “Considering the age gap of 31 years between the accused and the minor girl, the relationship established by two persons due to infatuation does not seem to be love.
Besides, the accused is experienced and mature, while the victim is a minor, so the relationship cannot be approved,” the court observed. The court said the victim's statement to the police in this regard and also to the Magistrate being consistent, these things are sufficient to award maximum punishment to the accused.
The 14-year-old victim living in Mumbai met the 45-year-old accused through Facebook. He told her that his age is 25 years. After initially meeting in a garden, they started going out together every week. In January 2019, when the victim's parents were not at home, the accused came to the victim's house and forced her to marry her, the parents alleged.
