Mother’s ‘dilemma’

Despite lodging the original FIR, the mother turned hostile during the trial. While she identified her signature on the FIR, she resiled from her earlier statements regarding the assault.

During her initial testimony, the 8-year-old was also declared hostile after failing to provide a complete account of the incident. However, during a rigorous cross-examination by the Assistant Public Prosecutor, she admitted to the assault, detailed the specific nature of the abuse, and correctly identified the clothing worn by both herself and her father during the crime.

The defence lawyer argued that the girl had been declared hostile and, during her cross-examination, testified about the incident, making her an unreliable witness. The defence also pointed out that the girl’s mother had turned hostile, which undermines the evidence against the accused. Additionally, the lawyer claimed that the accused was falsely implicated due to his addiction to alcohol.

The court noted that the mother was caught in a “dilemma” between her husband and her child. “She appears to have chosen her husband… Evidence of such a hostile witness will be of no assistance to the prosecution, but at the same time, it will not efface the positive evidence which the victim has tendered,” the court stated.

The defence lawyer argued that the panch (independent) witness was illiterate, which called her credibility into question. During cross-examination, the panch witness confirmed in court that she could not read or write. She stated that the seizure panchnama, which documented the seizure of clothing belonging to both the girl and the accused, was handwritten by the police, after which she signed it.

Court slams police for ‘lackadaisical’ probe

The court criticised the Pune Rural police for their investigation methods, particularly the use of an illiterate independent witness to seize evidence. The court said it was surprising that in such a serious offence, the investigation officers adopted a “lackadaisical approach”.

“At the very least, it was expected from the investigation officer to secure a panch witness who is literate and sufficiently educated to understand the nature and implications of the proceedings that may subsequently be scrutinised during the trial. In the present case, such basic precautions appear to have been overlooked,” the court stated.

But the court further stated that, despite the “rustic background of the witness, her admissions regarding illiteracy and inability to sign her full name by themselves do not materially affect the evidentiary value of her testimony”.

Meanwhile, the medical examination of the girl confirmed vaginal penetration and physical injuries on her body. Considering the girl’s testimony and the medical evidence in this case as “definitive”, the court found the offence proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

In the order dated May 7, the court sentenced the accused to rigorous imprisonment for life, holding him guilty under sections of the Pocso Act and also under IPC sections 376 (2)(j) [rape] and 323 (voluntary causing hurt).

“The accused has subjected the victim to the most dastardly offence which has not only violated her body, but also her spirit. Children who have undergone such offences at the hands of their own parents seldom rise again in life. Such vicious acts of the accused, according to me, deserve no leniency whatsoever,” the court stated.