MUMBAI: A 23-year-old man was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment by a special
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences
(
POCSO) Act court for sexually harassing a 15-year-old girl.
The man held her hand and told her, “Love me”. The girl identified the accused, who lived within walking distance of her house though she never met him earlier. She used to cross his house on the way to meet her friend.
The victim, in her deposition before the court, said when she had got off the bus while coming back from college on August 10, 2015, and was walking through the subway to get to her house, the accused grabbed her hand and insisted she love him. When she tried to pull away, the accused verbally abused her and hit her on the back. The victim further stated the man threatened to kill her if she didn’t agree to marry him. After a brief struggle, she ran towards the market where she met her aunt and narrated the entire incident. Seeing the victim with her aunt, the accused fled the scene. The victim then called up her mother and lodged a complaint with police.
During cross-examination, the girl said her family members were never in touch with parents of the accused. She also denied the defence suggestion that she had falsely implicated the man at the behest of her family members.
Besides the victim, her aunt, mother and the cop who recorded the complaint testified before the court. The mother too denied claims that the accused was falsely implicated as there was a long-standing dispute between their families.
The aunt, in her deposition, said she had seen the accused grabbing the minor’s hand. She further stated when the victim told her about the incident, she complained to the man’s father.
But his father paid no heed, following which a complaint was lodged. The court convicted the accused on charges of outraging modesty and sexual harassment.
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