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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
KAUSER EDAPPAGATH
A.Neelalohithadasan Nadar – Appellant
Versus
State Of Kerala – Respondent
ORDER :
KAUSER EDAPPAGATH, J.
The revision petitioner, Minister for Forest, Kerala, in 1999, was prosecuted before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court – IV, Kozhikode (referred to as ‘the trial court’), for an offence punishable under Section 354 of the IPC, on the allegation that he outraged the modesty of the victim, an officer of the Indian Forest Service who was then serving as the Divisional Forest Officer, Kozhikode. After a comprehensive trial, the trial court found the petitioner guilty of the offence under Section 354 of the IPC, convicted him, and sentenced him to undergo simple imprisonment for one year. On appeal, the Court of Session, Kozhikode (referred to as ‘the appellate court’), upheld the conviction but reduced the sentence to three months’ simple imprisonment. This revision petition has been filed challenging the judgments of both the trial court and the appellate court.
2. I have heard Sri.S.Rajeev, the learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri.E.C.Bineesh, the learned Senior Public Prosecutor.
3. The conviction was primarily based on the victim's oral testimony. The evidence of the mother and a friend of the victim, who were examined as PW5 and PW14, respec
For a conviction in sexual offenses under IPC, the victim's testimony must be reliable and of sterling quality, free from inconsistencies and delays affecting credibility.
The testimony of the victim in sexual assault cases must be credible and reliable; delays and contradictions can undermine a prosecution's case, leading to acquittal.
A prosecutrix's credible testimony can be sufficient for conviction in sexual assault cases even without corroboration, provided it is reliable and consistent.
The conviction under Section 354 IPC was upheld based on the credible testimony of the victim, while the sentence was reduced from five to three years due to mitigating circumstances.
The sole testimony of a victim in a rape case may suffice for conviction if deemed credible, despite inconsistencies and lack of corroborative evidence.
Substantive sentence can be reduced if incident is old one.
It is well settled that a prosecutrix complaining of having been a victim of offence of rape is not an accomplice after crime.
The court affirmed that a victim's consistent testimony, corroborated by medical evidence, is sufficient for conviction in sexual assault cases, despite minor inconsistencies.
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