Read Time: 04 minutes

Synopsis

The Bombay High Court has recently granted bail to a man booked in a POCSO case, noting that it is unfortunate that a 7-year-old was used as a pawn in the backdrop of a family dispute.

“It is indeed an unfortunate situation, which prima facie indicates that a girl child aged only about 7 years, appears to have been used as a pawn by her own mother to level serious allegations against her brother-in-law i.e. the applicant, in the backdrop of a family dispute. Such prima facie opinion can be reached on the basis of the affidavit of respondent No.2 that was placed before the Sessions Court. The respondent No.2 has confirmed that she stands by the said affidavit. In the affidavit, it is stated that due to the family dispute and in a fit of rage, the FIR came to be registered,” the order reads.

A single-judge bench of the Bombay High Court, comprising Justice Manish Pitale, was hearing a bail application filed by a man booked for allegedly sexually assaulting his niece.

The victim's mother had filed an FIR against her brother-in-law, under the IPC and the POCSO Act.

The applicant contended that, due to an ongoing family dispute, the informant had caused the FIR to be registered.

The applicant informed the bench that the informant, in an affidavit filed before the Sessions Court, specifically stated that due to a family dispute and in a fit of rage, she had caused the FIR to be registered against the applicant.

The high court, in its order, noted that although the offence pertains to penetrative sexual assault, the victim’s statement, recorded on 31.12.2023, refers only to the applicant touching the victim's private parts.

It further observed that the medical examination report showed the hymen was intact, the vagina was non-patulous, and the history recorded in the medical examination report included an exaggerated allegation about penetration.

Accordingly, the high court granted bail to the applicant.