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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY NAGPUR BENCH
URMILA JOSHI-PHALKE, J.
Ravindra S/o Laxman Narete - Appellant
Versus
State of Maharashtra - Respondent
Criminal Appeal No. 471 of 2017
Decided On : 30-06-2025
Based on the provided legal document, the court's analysis and conclusion can be summarized as follows:
The appellant challenged his conviction under Sections 354-A and 8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, which pertain to sexual harassment and sexual assault of a minor (!) (!) .
The prosecution's case was primarily based on the victim's testimony, supported by witnesses and documentary evidence such as the birth certificate establishing her age as 17 years at the time of the incident (!) (!) (!) .
The incident involved the accused following the victim on a motorcycle, holding her hand, and expressing romantic feelings, including the words "I love you" (!) (!) (!) .
The court emphasized that mere verbal expressions of affection, such as saying "I love you," do not constitute sexual intent under the relevant laws unless accompanied by physical contact or conduct indicative of such intent (!) (!) .
The court examined the evidence regarding the accused's intent and found no sufficient proof that his actions reflected a sexual purpose. The evidence did not demonstrate any physical contact with sexual intent or repeated behavior indicating stalking or harassment (!) (!) (!) (!) .
The court highlighted that "sexual intent" involves a state of mind that must be inferred from surrounding facts and conduct, and words alone, such as "I love you," without supporting physical gestures or repeated conduct, do not meet this criterion (!) (!) .
Given the absence of evidence showing physical contact with sexual intent or conduct that would constitute sexual assault or harassment, the charges under the IPC and POCSO Act were not proved beyond reasonable doubt (!) (!) .
Consequently, the court found that the prosecution failed to establish the essential elements of the alleged offences, leading to the quashing of the conviction and the acquittal of the accused (!) (!) (!) (!) .
The order included the immediate release of the accused if not required elsewhere, and the refusal of any fine paid, with the discharge of bail bonds (!) (!) .
In summary, the court clarified that verbal expressions such as "I love you" alone do not amount to sexual intent unless accompanied by physical actions or conduct that clearly indicate such intent. The absence of such evidence resulted in the acquittal of the accused.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. conviction of accused under pocso act (Para 1 , 2) |
| 2. facts of the case involving victim and accused (Para 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 3. summary of evidence and witness statements. (Para 8) |
| 4. arguments regarding victim's age and credibility of evidence. (Para 9) |
| 5. arguments on evidence and victim's age (Para 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14) |
| 6. legal definition and components of sexual harassment under section 354-a. (Para 23 , 25 , 26 , 27) |
| 7. elements of sexual intent in ipc and pocso (Para 24 , 28 , 29 , 39 , 40) |
| 8. court's interpretation of 'sexual intent' and its relevance to charges. (Para 30 , 34) |
| 9. conclusion that charges were not proven; acquittal pronouncement. (Para 41) |
| 10. conclusion of acquittal of accused (Para 42) |
JUDGMENT :
URMILA JOSHI-PHALKE, J.
1. By this appeal, the appellant (accused) has challenged judgment and order dated 18.8.2017 passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge, Nagpur (learned Judge of the trial court) in Special Child Criminal Case No.2/2016.
2. By the said judgment impugned in the appeal, the accused is convicted for offences under Sections 354- A(i) of the Indian Penal Code and 8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act , 2012 (the POCSO Act) and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 3 years and to pay fine Rs.5,000/-, in default, to undergo simple imprisonment for two months.
3. Brief facts of the prosecution case emerged from the police papers and recorded evidence are as under:
A minor girl (the victim), aged 17 years, resident of Khapa, tahsil Katol, district Nagpur, filed a report on 23.10.2015 alleging that she resides at the said place and is taking education in 11th Std. at Umri. She returns home by 1:00 pm. The accused is also from the same village known as “Balya”. On 23.10.2015, at about 1:15 pm, when she returned to bus stop and was proceeding along with her cousin by walk towards her house, at the agricultural field of one Dandare Sir, the accused came from Sonoli Side on his motorcycle and communicated her, hold her hands, and expressed that unless and until she discloses her name, he will not allow her to go and also expressed that “I love you” and, thereafter, she rescued herself from his clutches and went home and disclosed the same incident to her father. On the basis of the said report, the police registered the crime under Section 354-A (i) and 354-D(1)(i) of the IPC and under Section 8 of the POCSO Act.
4. After registration of the crime, the investigating officer visited the alleged spot of the incident and recorded statements of witnesses and after completion of the investigation, he submitted chargesheet against the accused.
5. Learned Judge of the trial court framed charge vide Exh.8, which denied by the accused.
6. In support of the prosecution case, the prosecution examined in all 5 witnesses namely PW1 the victim vide Exh.12; PW2 her cousin sister vide Exh.15, PW3 Vijay Sahare vide Exh.17; PW4 the father of the victim; and PW5 R.R.Pal the investigating officer vide Exh.24.
7. Besides the oral evidence, the prosecution placed reliance on report Exh.13, FIR Exh.14, birth certificate Exh.19, arrest panchanama Exh.25, spot panchanama Exh.26, and seizure memo Exh.27.
8. After hearing both sides and appreciating the evidence on record, learned Judge of the trial court held the accused guilty and sentenced him, as the aforesaid. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with the same, the present appeal is preferred by the accused.
9. Heard learned counsel Mrs.Sonali Khobragade for the accused and learned Additional Public Prosecutor Shri M.J. Khan for the State. They took me through the record of the case and the evidence adduced.
10. Learned counsel for the accused submitted that due to previous enmity, the accused is implicated in the alleged offence. The age of the victim is not proved. Though the alleged incident has occurred during day time, no independent witness is examined by the prosecution.
To attract the offence under Section 354-A of the IPC, the pros
AI
The court found that mere verbal expressions of affection do not constitute sexual intent under relevant laws unless accompanied by physical actions indicative of such intent.
The act of touching a minor's breast constitutes sexual assault under Section 8 of the POCSO Act, affirming that sexual intent is sufficient to establish culpability irrespective of skin contact.
(1) Attempt to outrage modesty of minor girl – In order to bring home charge under Section 354 of IPC thereof, prosecution is required to establish that accused, with criminal or sexual intent, assau....
Prosecution can establish the age of the victim through reliable oral testimonies, such as those from the victim and her mother, even if specific documentary evidence under the PoCSO Act is absent.
Conviction under POCSO upheld based on established victim age and credible testimonies despite appellant's inconsistencies.
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