Chhattisgarh High Court Overturns Acquittal, Imposes Life Term for 2015 School Assault
In a landmark ruling, the Chhattisgarh High Court has set aside a 2017 judgment and sentenced a 50-year-old man to life imprisonment for the sexual assault of a 9-year-old girl student at a mission school in Koriya district. The court strongly criticized the trial court's earlier acquittal, emphasizing the paramount importance of a survivor's testimony in such cases.
Court Condemns Trial Court Error and Staff Concealment
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal allowed the state's appeal on Tuesday, delivering a stern verdict. The bench explicitly stated that the trial court erred in its 2017 judgment by acquitting the respondents. It highlighted that the testimony of a sexual assault survivor carries significant weight and does not legally require corroboration.
The court observed that corroboration is a matter of judicial prudence rather than a mandatory condition for conviction. If a survivor's account is credible, natural, consistent, and trustworthy, the court may act upon it without independent corroboration. The judges noted the societal context, remarking that girls and women in India's tradition-bound society are often reluctant to report incidents that might reflect on their chastity, making their courage in coming forward even more critical.
Detailed Convictions and Sentencing
The division bench found the primary accused guilty under Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). He was sentenced to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 10,000.
In a significant move, the court also convicted two other school staff members, aged 23 and 36, under Section 119 of the IPC for public servants concealing a design to commit an offence. The bench remarked that these staff members, as public servants, had a statutory duty to prevent the crime but instead chose deliberate concealment. They were each sentenced to 7 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 5,000.
The court directed all three convicts to surrender before the trial court within two weeks to begin serving their sentences.
Background of the 2015 Incident
The assault occurred in September 2015 at a mission school hostel in Koriya district. The survivor, a Class 4 student, was assaulted after she entered the boys' washroom because the girls' facility was locked. Her mother filed a report at Podi police station after being informed of her daughter's ill health.
Medical examinations confirmed multiple injuries, and during the investigation, the survivor identified the primary accused in a test identification parade at Manendragarh sub-jail. The court held that the survivor's testimony was consistent and supported by the initial medical report and Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) findings, deeming this evidence sufficient for conviction.
This ruling reinforces the judiciary's commitment to protecting children and holding perpetrators accountable, while also underscoring the responsibilities of public servants in such institutions.
