Mumbai: After spending two years in prison, the NGO Dard Se Humdard Tak, which works to assist helpless prisoners with legal aid, succeeded in securing bail for a man arrested in 2022 in an alleged case of raping a 16-year-old girl.
Court Questions Motive Behind Case
Mumbai’s special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) court, while granting bail to the accused, observed that the case appeared to have been filed merely because the girl’s family disapproved of their relationship.
In such circumstances, the court held, the accused could not be kept behind bars, particularly when the girl was mature enough to understand the consequences of her actions.
Victim Did Not Testify
The court noted that despite being given an opportunity to appear, the victim did not come forward to give her statement, and therefore the court proceeded to pass orders “without the victim’s say.”
Consent and Maturity Considered
“In the instant case, the age of the victim is 16 years and 10 months. It can be safely inferred that her consent was obvious and, therefore, it is a mitigating circumstance, as the victim had sufficient maturity to understand the consequences of her act. It also appears that the victim and the applicant were in love with each other and chose to live together without the consent of their parents. No criminal antecedents of the applicant have been reported by the police. As their relationship was not approved by the victim’s parents, the report came to be lodged under parental pressure,” noted the court, citing submissions made by advocate Vivek Nishad, appearing on behalf of Dard Se Humdard Tak.
Delay in Trial
The accused was arrested on April 17, 2022, and had been in custody since then. Charges have not yet been framed, and the court held that the delay in trial was another ground for granting bail.
FIR Based on Missing Complaint
According to the prosecution, on April 10, 2022, the victim went missing from her residence and did not return home. Her mother inquired with relatives and a shopkeeper, but the victim was not traceable. A missing person’s report was lodged against an unknown person, and based on the mother’s statement, Ghatkopar police registered a case under the POCSO Act.
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Defence Claims Voluntary Relationship
Meanwhile, advocate Vishal, appearing for the accused, argued that as per the allegations in the FIR, the victim had voluntarily left her parental home and chosen to live with the accused.
