COMMON ORDER

1. Since the issue involved and the parties are one and the same, with the consent of the parties, all these Criminal Petitions are being disposed of by this Common Order.

2. Petitioner is the Accused and respondent is the State/Complainant in SC No.07 of 2019 on the file of the Court of Special Judge for Speedy Trial of Offences under Protection of Children From Sexual offences Act, Vijayawada.

3. For the sake of convenience, the parties hereinafter are referred to as they are arrayed in SC No.07 of 2019.

4. Brief facts of the Prosecution case are that P.W.1 is resident of Kanuru Village Penamaluru Mandal and P.W.3 is a minor girl by the date of offence and studying Intermediate First Year in Stella College. On 19.10.2015, P.W.1 found that P.W.3 is missing from Kanaka Durga Temple Bus Stop, Moghalrajapuram, Vijayawada, while, she along with her grandmother/P.W.1, younger sister/P.W.2 visited temple. On 20.10.2015, P.W.1 gave a report to P.W.5, which was registered as a case in Crime No.606/2015 u/Sec.s 363 and 376(2) IPC and Section 6 read with Section 5(l) of POCSO Act. On the same day at 9.30 P.M., P.W.1 produced P.W.3 (victim girl) before the Police. P.W.3 in her statement stated that her date of birth is 10.06.1999. She had an acquaintance with the Accused, who is drop out of X Class, aged about 21 years old and is a painter. Their acquaintance turned into love in the year 2015 and in the month of August, 2015, they both went to Machilipatnam Beach and stayed in a room and met physically. On 21.10.2015, they both went to Mumbai and took a room at the house of Muteen near Oxford school and had sexual intercourse every day. Basing on the state of P.W.3/Minor Girl altered the Section of Law from 363, 376(2)(N) IPC and Section 6 read with Section 5(l) of the Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (for short ‘the POCSO Act, 2012’) and issued altered FIR on 20.11.2015. After completion of investigation, Police filed Charge Sheet, which was taken on file and numbered as SC No.13 of 2017 on the file of the Court of Special Judge for Speedy Trial of Offences Under Protection of Children From Sexual offences Act, Vijayawada, for the offences under Sections 363 and 376(2)(N) IPC and Section 6 read with Section 5(l) of POCSO Act.

5. During the course of trial, P.Ws.1 to 10 were examined and Exs.P1 to Ex.P11 were marked and Accused was examined under Section 313 Cr.P.C. At the stage of reply arguments, Prosecution has filed a Petition under Section 311 Cr.P.C. vide Crl.M.P.No.1382 of 2022 to recall P.W.3 along with her date of birth certificate for the purpose of marking of the same through her followed by another Petition vide Crl.M.P.No.1381 of 2022 to reopen the evidence of P.W.3 for the purpose of marking her date of birth certificate. After hearing both the parties, the Learned Trial Judge vide Common Order dated 20.10.2023 allowed the said petitions and ordered to recall and reopen the evidence of P.W.3 for the purpose of marking original birth certificate of the victim girl. Challenging the Order Common Order dated 20.03.2023 passed in Crl.M.P.Nos.1381 of 2022 and 1382 of 2022 in SC No.07/2019, Crl.P.Nos.2419 of 2023 and 2421 of 2023 respectively are filed.

7. Heard Sri Challa Ajay Kumar, learned counsel for the Petitioner, Ms. Priyanka Lakshmi, learned Assistant Public Prosecutor appeared on behalf of learned Public Prosecutor for Respondent/State. Perused the material on record.

8. Learned counsel for the Petitioner would submit that only to fill up the lacuna, at the fag-end of the case, these Petitions are filed, which are not permissible and not maintainable either in law or on facts. Learned counsel further would submit that the Prosecution has to establish that the victim is a minor girl as on the date of the incident. In the instant case, they have failed to establish the age of the victim and at the time of reply arguments of the Prosecution, they have come up with these petitions to recall P.W.3