59-year-old cleared of POCSO case after three years in jail

According to the prosecution case, the accused and his wife ran a nursery and daycare centre at Goregaon. The working parents of the girl used to drop her at the centre at 8:30am and would take her back at 5pm.

MUMBAI: A special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) court on Tuesday acquitted a 59-year-old man of the charge of sexually abusing a four-year-old girl after he spent three years behind bars.

During the trial, when the prosecution examined the victim, she could not identify the accused. Besides, the court noted that she categorically stated that “this uncle” had not done any bad acts with her. Moreover, the complainant was declared hostile as she denied having given any statement to the police and maintained that she had simply signed the dotted line. She, however, identified her signature on the statement but said she did not know what was written in it as it was in Marathi. (Getty Images)

According to the prosecution case, the accused and his wife ran a nursery and daycare centre at Goregaon. The working parents of the girl used to drop her at the centre at 8:30am and would take her back at 5pm.

The mother of the victim claimed that on March 6, 2020, her son brought the girl home at 7pm. She claimed that as soon as the girl reached home, she started crying and said she had stomach pain and vomiting. The complainant immediately took her to the doctor. She was later referred to Cooper Hospital.

The girl told the doctor who examined her at Cooper Hospital that since the last three to four days a man had been touching her inappropriately. The medical officer narrated the information to her mother, who then approached the Goregaon Police Station where an FIR was registered on March 8, 2020. The accused was arrested on the same day.

The court noted that the complainant had not supported the prosecution, but the child could not identify the accused. “She has categorically stated that the accused has not done any act with her. The remaining evidence of the prosecution is that of the police witnesses. There is no direct evidence on record. Therefore, the prosecution has failed to prove that the accused committed rape and aggravated penetrative sexual assault on the 4-year-old victim,” said the court.