Underage sex: HC quashes Pocso cases against man after wife’s plea

Kolkata: Wife's plea before the Port Blair circuit bench of the Calcutta High Court led to the quashing of two Pocso cases against her husband for having sexual relations with her when she was a minor. The division bench noted the couple have two children and said any conviction would destroy the family."While the object of the Pocso Act is definitely laudable, its demerit is its rigidity," the division bench held, deciding not to blindly prosecute the husband."The couple met in 2017. The girl was a 14-year-old class 7 student at Karmatang and the man was 24 years old. The first child, a girl, was born to the couple in 2017. It was then that a Pocso Act case of rape was filed against the husband as the wife was a minor.He was out on bail when the girl again got pregnant and delivered their second child, a son, in 2019. She was a minor then too and another case of similar nature was filed against the husband. The couple were cohabiting and not legally married. In each case, the man was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 5,000. He filed an appeal against the special court's conviction before the division bench of Justice Arijit Banerjee and Justice Apurba Sinha Ray.But hearing the depositions of the couple before the special court as well as the wife's urge before the HC, the division bench held: "It was more than mere physical relationship between the two. It was a meeting of minds. It was a longing to be together and walk the path of life holding each other's hands. This is not a case where the survivor girl fell prey to the accused person's lust, libido or carnal desire. This is a case of loving consensual physical relationship in which force or violence had no role to play."While the law is strict on the underage factor and considers it to be rape, the HC extended Article 21 of the Indian Constitution when considering this particular case. It was held that Article 21 gives them the right to live a happy and healthy married life and is therefore a citizen's fundamental right. The judges also considered the economic status of the family. "He is the sole earning member of the family. If these appeals fail, he, who is presently on bail, will have to go back to custody. The probable and very likely result would be disintegration of a happy family leading to destitution and ultimate destruction and ruination of the wife and the two children."