JUDGMENT/ORDER

1. Heard the learned counsel for respective parties at length.

2. The appellant herein has made the victim as party respondent no.2 in the Appeal as well as application seeking suspension of sentence, being APPA (St) No. 8955/2023. This practice is followed in all appeals where the accused/appellant is convicted for the offence punishable under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (for short, 'the POCSO Act').

3. On query as to why the victim has been made partyrespondent no.2, Mr. N.S.Giripunje, the learned counsel for the appellant submits that the victim is made party in terms of the law laid down by the Division Bench of this Court, in the case of Arjun Kishanrao Malge vs. State of Maharashtra.

4. With the assistance of the learned counsel appearing for the appellant and the learned APP I have minutely gone through the aforesaid judgment, and found that there is no such direction issued by the Division Bench.

5. The petitioner before the Division Bench was a social worker, working with the child victims of sexual abuse and their families across Mumbai. According to him, in several cases under the POCSO Act, the Courts and the