JUDGMENT :

P. VELMURUGAN, J.

1. This appeal has been filed to set aside the Judgment and Conviction passed in Spl. S.C. No. 33 of 2018 dated 15.04.2019 on the file of the learned Sessions Judge, Fast Track Mahila Court, Tiruppur.

2. The respondent police registered a case against the appellant for the offence under Sections 341, 506(ii) of IPC and Section 4 of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of [Harassment of Woman] Act, 1998. After investigation, the respondent laid a charge-sheet before the Magalir Neethimandram (Fast Track Mahila Court), Tiruppur for the offence under Sections 341, 506(ii) of IPC and Section 7 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. The learned Special Judge, taken the charge-sheet on file in Spl. S.C. No. 33 of 2018 and after completing the formalities, framed charges against the appellant for the offence under Sections 341, 506(ii) of IPC and Section 7 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.

3. After framing of the charges, during trial, in order to prove the case of the prosecution, on the side of the prosecution, as many as 5 witnesses were examined as PW-1 to PW-5 and 6 exhibits were marked as Exs.P1 to P6. No material object was marked. After completing the examination of the prosecution witnesses, incriminating circumstances were culled out from the prosecution witnesses and put before the appellant/accused, he denied the same as false. On the side of the defence no oral evidence were adduced and one document was exhibited as Ex.D1.

4. After completing the trial and after hearing the arguments advanced on either side, the trial Court found guilty of the appellant/accused for the offence under Sections 341, 506(ii) IPC and also Section 7 of POCSO Act and to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- in default, to undergo Simple Imprisonment for six months for the offence under Section 341 IPC, to undergo 5 years Rigorous Imprisonment and fine of Rs. 2,000/- in default, to undergo one year Rigorous Imprisonment for the offence under Section 506(ii) IPC, to undergo 5 years Rigorous Imprisonment and fine of Rs. 5,000/- in default to undergo one year Rigorous Imprisonment for the offence under Section 7 which is punishable under Section 8 of POCSO Act, 2012. Challenging the said judgment of conviction and sentence passed by the Trial Court, the accused has preferred the present appeal before this Court.

5. The learned counsel for the appellant would submit that the prosecution has suppressed the counter case lodged by the appellant, which falsify the case of the prosecution in this case. Originally, the case was registered only for the offence under Sections 341 and 354 IPC and Section 4 of Tamil Nadu Prohibition of [Harassment of Woman] Act, 1998 and there was no case registered under the POCSO Act and there is a delay in filing the complaint by the PW-2. The alleged occurrence said to have taken place on 22.10.2015 at about 8.30 a.m. whereas the complaint was given only on 23.10.2015 at about 12.15 p.m. Earlier, there was a counter case against the five persons given by the appellant herein and the said FIR has also been marked as Ex.D1, which clearly shows that on 22.10.2015 at about 8.45 a.m. the appellant was assaulted by five known persons and he was admitted in the hospital. The Investigating Officer also admitted the same during the cross examination that on 23.10.2015 at about 9.00 a.m. the information was received from the Government Hospital, Tiruppur and one of the police official went to the Government Hospital, Tiruppur and recorded the statement from the appellant/accused. Thereafter, case was registered on the complaint given by the appellant against the five known persons only after registering the FIR in the present case. As per Ex.D1, even though the information received on 23.10.2015 from the Government Hospital at about 9.00 a.m. in the FIR, they have stated that the information received only at 13.15 hours which clearly shows that only after filing the complaint by the appellant,