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2026:CGHC:5409-DB

NAFR

HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR

CRA No. 350 of 2024

Besahu Lal Yadav S/o Ramkishor Yadav Aged About 19 Years R/o Jaipur,

District Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh (M.P.)

... Appellant(s)

versus

State Of Chhattisgarh Through Police Station Janakpur, District Korea (C.G.)

Present District Manendragarh-Chirmiri-Bharatpur (M.C.B.) (C.G.)

... Respondent(s)

For Appellant(s) : Mr. Hemant Kumar Agrawal, Advocate.

For Respondent(s) : Mr. Shailendra Sharma, Panel Lawyer

For Complainant/Objector : Mr. Udho Ram Koshley, Advocate.

Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice

Hon'ble Shri Ravindra Kumar Agrawal , Judge

Judgment on Board

Per Ramesh Sinha , Chief Justice

31/01/2026

1 Heard Mr. Hemant Kumar Agrawal, learned counsel for the appellant,

Mr. Shailendra Sharma, learned Panel Lawyer for the State/respondent

as well as Mr. Udho Ram Koshley, learned counsel for the

complainant/objector.

2 Challenge in this appeal is to the judgment of conviction and order of

sentence dated 12.01.2024 passed in Special Criminal Case No.

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79/2021 by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Fast Track Special

Court (POCSO), Manendragarh, District Koriya, by which the appellant

has been convicted and sentenced as under:

Conviction under Jail Sentence Fine Default Jail

Section Sentence

341 of the Indian 1 month simple Rs. 100/- 7 days simple

Penal Code (for imprisonment imprisonment.

short, the IPC)

354 of the IPC 2 years rigorous Rs. 500/- Rigorous

imprisonment imprisonment for

one month.

376(3) of the IPC Imprisonment for life Rs. 500/- Rigorous

which shall mean imprisonment for

remainder of natural one year.

life.

3 The appellant/convict was charged alleging that on 06.07.2021, at the

place under the Semar tree near Uchehra Pulia, Bharatpur Police Station

Janakpur, by blocking the way of the victim and causing wrongful

obstruction, he used criminal force on the victim with the intention of

outraging her modesty and by having sexual intercourse with the victim

(whose age was less than 16 years at the time of the incident) he

committed rape and penetrative sexual assault, thereby committing the

offence punishable under sections 341, 354, 376, 376(3) of the IPC and

section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012

(for short, the POCSO Act).

4 The prosecution case, in brief, is that on 06.07.2021, at approximately

5:00 p.m., the victim had gone to her uncle's house to attend a wedding.

She was returning home alone when, at approximately 7:00 p.m., the

appellant encountered her on the way. With the intention of humiliating

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her, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her under a Semar tree near a

culvert and forcibly raped her, causing her to lose consciousness. When

she regained consciousness 20 minutes later, the appellant fled. Based

on the victim's father's written complaint (Exhibit P/6), the Janakpur

Police Station registered a First Information Report (FIR) (Exhibit P/7)

under Sections 341, 354, and 376 of the IPC and Section 4 of the

POCSO Act. After completing the investigation, charge sheet was filed

against the appellant under the aforementioned Sections of the IPC and

the POCSO Act, before the trial Court concerned.

5 When the charges under Sections 341, 354, 376, and 376 (3) of the IPC

and Section 4 of the POCSO Act were read out to the appellant, he

abjured the guilt and prayed for trial.

6 In order to bring home the offence, the prosecution examined as many as

10 witnesses namely the mother of the victim (PW-1), the victim (PW-2),

father of the victim (PW-3), Chanda (PW-4), Mithailal Baiga (PW-5), Dr.

Marisha Singh (PW-6), Rukmani Banjare (PW-7), J.L.Gayakwad (PW-

8), Sunil Tirki (PW-9) and Kripashankar Paikra (PW-10) and exhibited as

many as 28 Exhibits.

7 The statement of the appellant was also recorded under Section 313

Cr.P.C. in which the appellant expressed his ignorance to most of the

questions and some of them were denied as well. He stated that he was

falsely implicated and that he should be acquitted.

8 The learned trial Judge, after consid