Mumbai: Man Convicted Of Harassment, Acquitted Of Sexual Assault Charges In POCSO Case

A special POCSO court sentenced a 32-year-old man from Vikhroli to five years imprisonment for sexually harassing a six-year-old girl when she was playing outside her house in July 2022. The court, however, acquitted him from stringent charges of sexual penetration, reasoning that the girl could not corroborate the allegation. Notably, the medical report confirmed that the minor was sexually assaulted.

As per the prosecution, the incident took place on the evening of July 20, 2022, when the victim was playing in an auto. The man approached her, removed her underpants and touched her private parts, said the prosecution, adding that the medical report showed that there was a hymen tear.

The court, however, did not accept the argument, observing that the child testified that the accused touched her cheek with his genitals. Though there is medical evidence of hymen tear, the oral evidence about the penetrative assault is not consistent,” the court said, while refusing to convict the man for sexual assault.