Mumbai court acquits 56-year-old man after eight years due to ‘scanty’ evidence in POCSO case: Report

A special POCSO court acquitted a the man - a driver - who spent eight years in prison for allegedly assaulting a girl with intellectual disabilities.

A 56-year-old man who spent eight years behind bars on charges of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl with intellectual disabilities has been acquitted by a special POCSO court in Maharashtra's Mumbai, which found glaring gaps in the prosecution’s case.

The judge highlighted significant gaps in the prosecution's case, including discrepancies in age and cognitive ability, leading to the conclusion of reasonable doubt. (HT FILE)

Special Judge ND Khose, delivering the verdict, observed that the prosecution failed to establish even the “basic foundational facts” necessary to support the allegations, reported The Times of India on Sunday. The court pointed to major discrepancies regarding the girl’s age, questions about her cognitive abilities, and contradictions between her statements and the medical evidence.

“To my mind, evidence adduced by the prosecution is scanty and not sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt. If it were so, to my mind, the accused is entitled to get the benefit of doubt,” the report quoted Special Judge ND Khose as saying.

The FIR was filed on August 24, 2017, alleging the incident occurred the previous evening between 8 and 8:30 pm in a slum neighbourhood. According to the complaint, the girl’s mother claimed she had stepped out to the market while her sons were away. During that time, the neighbour, the accused, allegedly entered the house, and the girl later reported that he kissed her and had physical contact with her.

The man reportedly worked as a driver.

The evidence placed on record is minimal and insufficient to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt, Judge Khose stated. In such circumstances, the accused must be given the benefit of doubt, he added, as per the report.

The accused's advocates argued that the case stemmed from prior hostility between the driver and the girl’s family. They maintained that he had been wrongfully implicated and emphasised that there was no credible proof of the girl having any mental impairment. No documentary record shows the victim was abnormal. Even the medical evidence does not support the prosecution’s narrative, they argued.

However, the court found that the prosecution failed to convincingly prove the girl was under 18 at the time, an essential requirement for a POCSO charge. Judge Khose said the birth certificate presented was unreliable, noting discrepancies in the parents’ names and inconsistencies between official records. The FIR mentioned a birth year of 2000, whereas the school certificate cited 2002.

In the absence of credible, authentic documentation, the exact age of the girl on the date of the alleged incident cannot be said to be proven, the judge ruled.

The court also said that the prosecution’s attempt to establish that the girl had an IQ of 36 was unsupported by solid evidence. With these doubts unresolved, the court acquitted the driver, bringing an end to his eight-year incarceration.

HT.com has not independently verified the authenticity of this information.