IMPORTANT POINT
The court affirmed the conviction for kidnapping and sexual assault of a minor, emphasizing the importance of age determination and the reliability of victim testimony supported by medical evidence.

JUDGMENT :

Ramesh Sinha, CJ.

1. The appellant has preferred this appeal under Section 374(2) of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short, ‘CrPC’) questioning the impugned judgment dated 15.07.2022 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Fast Track Special Court (POCSO Act), Ramanujganj, District : Balrampur-Ramanujganj (C.G.) in Special Sessions Trial (POCSO) No.04/2022, whereby the trial Court has convicted and sentenced the appellant with a direction to run all the sentences concurrently, in the following manner :-

2. Case of the prosecution, in brief, is that on the morning of 28.01.2022, the victim aged 5 years (PW-8) had gone to play at the house of a neighbor in her village. At around 10.30, the victim came home crying. Father of the victim (PW-1) when asked the victim the reason for crying, the victim did not say anything. Thereafter the mother of the victim (PW-2) when asked the victim the reason for crying, the victim told that accused Sanjay Kodaku cheated her and took her to the forest and did wrong things. Thereafter, when the victim's mother lifted the victim's frock and saw, she found that blood was coming out from the victim's genitals and the genitals were swollen. Thereafter, on the evening of the said date, the victim's father lodged a written complaint (Ex.P-1) against the accused in Police Station Chalgali, District Balrampur (C.G.). On the basis of said written complaint, First Information Report under crime number 05/2022 was registered by Police Station Chalgali under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (for short ‘IPC’) and Section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (for short ‘POCSO Act’).

3. Assistant Sub Inspector of Police Station Chalgali, Sebresius Tirkey (PW-7) inspected the scene of the incident on the date of the incident itself as per the information given by the victim's father and prepared a visual map vide Ex.P-3 and recorded the statements of the applicant/victim's father and other witnesses. During the course investigation of the case, Sub Inspector Sunil Tiwari (PW-11) after receiving consent from victim's parents vide Ex.P-11 sent the victim to Balrampur District Hospital for genital examination. Underwear of accused was seized vide seizure sheet Ex.P-11A and the victim's vaginal discharge and oral swab, frock and others were seized vide seizure sheet Ex.P-12. Record of Anganwadi center regarding the date of birth of the victim was seized vide Ex.P-6. Thereafter, statement of the victim was recorded by lady police officer Inspector Anita Prabha Minj (PW-10). The statement of the victim was got recorded under Section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure by the Investigation Officer Sunil Tiwari and the accused was arrested. For D.N.A. testing, the identity cards of the victim and the accused were prepared vide Ex.P-22 and Ex.P-23 respectively and consent was taken from the victim's father vide Ex.P-24 and consent from accused was obtained vide Ex.P-25. A letter was sent to District Hospital, Balrampur for collecting blood sample for DNA testing of the victim and the accused vide Ex.P-17. Blood samples of the victim and accused were seized by Dr. Surendra Gupta vide Ex.P-9 and Ex.P-10 respectively. The said blood samples were sent to FSL, Raipur through Superintendent of Police Balrampur for DNS analysis.

4. After receiving DNA report vide Ex.P-21, other statutory formalities related to research were completed and charge sheet was submitted against the accused under Section 6 of