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SANJIB BANERJEE, B. BHATTACHARJEE
Betstarling Basan – Appellant
Versus
State of Meghalaya – Respondent
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. issue of charges being altered during trial. (Para 1 , 2 , 3) |
| 2. court's discretion on altering charges. (Para 4 , 5 , 6) |
| 3. prejudice standard for further cross-examination. (Para 7 , 19) |
| 4. nature of additional charges and their relevance. (Para 8 , 9) |
| 5. legal standard for defining rape and sexual assault. (Para 10 , 11 , 12 , 13) |
| 6. assessment of survivor's statements and medical evidence. (Para 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18) |
| 7. modifications to conviction and sentences. (Para 21 , 22 , 23 , 24) |
| 8. final order and conclusion of the appeal. (Para 26 , 27 , 28) |
JUDGMENT :
SANJIB BANERJEE, CJ.
1. The appellant was charged with the commission of an offence under Section 3 (a) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 for an incident that took place on November 20, 2012. The appellant claims that despite no evidence of penetration being produced, he has been convicted for rape. The additional ground canvassed is that the trial court completely altered the charges and added additional charges after the recording of the evidence was over.
2. Indeed, the appellant here made an application for cross-examining the prosecution witnesses upon the additional charges bei
The court affirmed that procedural irregularities do not invalidate convictions if no prejudice is shown, emphasizing the trial court's discretion in adding charges.
The conviction in sexual assault cases can be based solely on the victim's reliable testimony, irrespective of physical injury evidence.
Retrospective application of amended laws increasing penalties violates constitutional protections; original sentence modified to align with laws in effect at the time of the offence.
The court affirmed that a victim's credible testimony can suffice for conviction in sexual assault cases, despite procedural lapses in witness examination.
An act, which is legal at the time of commission cannot be made illegal by way of introduction of new enactment.
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