In an appeal against his conviction under the POCSO Act, the Delhi High Court has upheld the 10-year sentence of a man found guilty of sexually assaulting his five-year-old stepdaughter. Appellant was charged under Section 376 of IPC[1] and Sections 6 and 8 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act (“POCSO”)
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri relied heavily on the testimony of an independent eyewitness who caught the accused red-handed inside an autorickshaw. The eyewitness, returning home from work, intervened when he saw the accused assaulting the child. He rescued her, and restrained the accused with the help of bystanders until police arrived.
The child victim, though hesitant to speak in detail, stated that her “father was a bad man” who had removed her underwear. The Court noted her demeanour in the trial court proceedings and held that her limited account, when seen with corroboration from other witnesses, was credible.
Respondent argued that the case was fabricated due to quarrels over parking and matrimonial discord with the victim’s mother. However, the Court found no material to support this claim, observing that minor inconsistencies across prosecution witnesses were natural and did not dent the core narrative.
Invoking Section 29 of the POCSO Act, which presumes guilt once foundational facts are established, the Court held that the appellant had failed to rebut the statutory presumption. The evidence of the complainant and other witnesses, coupled with the circumstances of the appellant being apprehended at the spot, left no room for doubt.
The appeal was dismissed, and both the conviction and sentence were upheld.
Cases Relied On:
Sambhubhai Raisangbhai Padhiyar v. State of Gujarat, reported as (2025) 2 SCC 399
Appearances
Appellants- Mr. Prashant Mehta, Mr. Charanpreet Singh, and Mr. Pranav Singh, Advocates
Respondents- Ms. Shubhi Gupta, APP for State. Sowjhanya Shankaran, Ms. Anuka Bachawat, Ms. Charu Sinha, Advocates for victim.
[1] Replaced by Section 64 of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita
