- In Mohammad Saimullah vs State of Meghalaya the Hon’ble Meghalaya HC has held that the mere act of holding the hands of the child and calling them beautiful cannot be considered to be an act of sexual assault under the POCSO Act.
- As per the case made by the prosecution, the accused had asked for a glass of water from the victim, and on her bringing the said glass to him, he grabbed her hand. According to the statements given by her under 164 CrPC, the victim had stated that the accused had held her hand and stroked it, and then remarked that her hand is very beautiful.
- The accused filed a petition under section 482 of CrPC before the HC and alleged that the mere act of a 55 year old man appreciating the hands of a young girl saying that they are beautiful, cannot by any stretch of imagination be considered an offence under any law.
- The Counsel for the State, on the other hand, alleged that the fact that the accused did not take the glass of water which was brought by the victim clearly showed his ulterior motives and thus, an offence under sections 9(m) and 7 of the POCSO Act is made out.
- The Hon’ble HC observed that the place of occurrence is located near the victims house and that a number of people were present, and that the alleged incident happened in broad daylight. The fact that the accused had allegedly commented on the victim’s hands being beautiful, and that the contact was probably of a few seconds only, the same cannot be read to imply that there was a sexual intent on the part of the petitioner. At best, what can be presumed is a non-sexual purpose.
- The Court relied on the decision of the Hon’ble Apex Court in Attorney General of India vs Satish and anr wherein it was held that touching the vagina, penis, anus or breast of a child with a sexual intent would amount to sexual assault. The key word here is sexual intent. The Court had also observed that the circumstances in which the touch or the physical contact occurs would be determinative of whether the same is motivated by sexual intent.
- Thus, the Court allowed the petition and the proceedings under the POCSO Act were, thus, quashed.
"Loved reading this piece by Shweta?
Join LAWyersClubIndia's network for daily News Updates, Judgment Summaries, Articles, Forum Threads, Online Law Courses, and MUCH MORE!!"
Join LAWyersClubIndia's network for daily News Updates, Judgment Summaries, Articles, Forum Threads, Online Law Courses, and MUCH MORE!!"
