Court acquits man in POCSO case filed by girlfriend’s father

A POCSO court acquitted a man of kidnapping and sexual harassment charges after the victim testified she eloped with him and was of legal age.

MUMBAI: A special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) court in Dindoshi last month acquitted a 32-year-old man from Kurla, almost seven years after he was charged under the POCSO act, based on the complaint filed by the father of a girl, who had alleged that the man kidnapped his daughter and sexually harassed her. The court, while acquitting the accused, said that the evidence given by the victim shows that she was not induced by the man to elope with him.

Court acquits man in POCSO case filed by girlfriend’s father

The complainant, the girl’s father, was a resident of Kandivali and had three sons and two daughters. The victim is the eldest daughter of the complainant and was studying in Uttar Pradesh but used to visit Mumbai from time to time, as per the prosecution. A case of kidnapping was lodged by the girl’s father on July 9, 2016, with Samta Nagar police station after his daughter left home on July 8 at around 1.15pm and did not return.

The investigating officers checked the call records of the victim, and traced her to Nashik, where she was eventually found with the man at Shivaji Chowk two months later. The prosecution submitted that the girl, in her statement to the police, said the man promised to marry her and took her to Nashik, where he sexually harassed her from July 10 to September 8. A case was registered at the Samta Nagar police station on July 9, 2016.

However, the victim deposed before the court that she had a love affair with the man and eloped with him. She denied the accusations of kidnapping and sexual harassment levelled against the man. Further, she added that she was 18 years old when she went with her lover, rejecting the claim that she was a minor.

The girl said that they eventually married and now have two children together. She also denied giving any statement to the police.

In a detailed order passed on October 25, the special sessions judge Nandkishor More said that the prosecution could not prove that the girl was kidnapped by the man. The court also held that there is no conclusive evidence which shows that the girl was a minor when she went with him.

“As the victim and the father of the victim did not support the case of prosecution on material particulars, to bring home the guilt of the accused, the accused deserves to be acquitted”, said the court.