2025:CGHC:56744-DB Digitally signed by ANURADHA ANURADHA TIWARI NAFR TIWARI Date:

2025.11.21

16:37:22 +0530 HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR CRA No. 232 of 2025 Laxman Mishra Urf Pintu S/o Thabir Mishra Aged About 23 Years R/o Village Maulikhar, P.S. Singhoda, District Mahasamund (C.G.)

... Appellant versus State of Chhattisgarh Through The Station House Officer, Police Station Sariya, District Sarangarh- Bilaigarh (C.G.)

... Respondent (Cause-title taken from Case Information System)

For Appellant : Mr. Sanjay Agrawal, Advocate For Respondent/State : Mr. Malay Jain, Panel Lawyer Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Hon'ble Shri Bibhu Datta Guru , Judge Judgment on Board Per Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice

21.11 .2025

1. Heard Mr. Sanjay Agrawal, learned counsel, appearing on behalf of the appellant as well as Mr. Malay Jain, learned Panel Lawyer, appearing on behalf of the State/respondent.

2. This appeal is directed against the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 08.01.2025 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Fast Track Special Court (POCSO Act), Sarangarh, Sessions Bench, Raigarh, District Sarangarh- Bilaigarh, Chhattisgarh in Special Criminal Case under POCSO Act No.37/2022 whereby the appellant has been convicted for the offence punishable under Sections 363, 366 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, “IPC”) and Section 5(ठ)/6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (for short, ‘POCSO Act’) and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 05 years and fine of Rs.500/-, in default of payment of fine, additional rigorous imprisonment for 04 months, rigorous imprisonment for 07 years and fine of Rs.1,000/-, in default of payment of fine, additional rigorous imprisonment for 06 months and rigorous imprisonment for 20 years and fine of Rs.1,000/-, in default of payment of fine, additional rigorous imprisonment for 01 year respectively, and it was further directed to run all the sentences concurrently.

3. Learned State counsel submits that notice issued to PW-2 father of the victim has been served, but none has appeared on behalf of the victim to contest the present appeal.

4. The prosecution case, briefly stated, is that the father of the minor victim girl (PW-1), namely PW-2, appeared at Police Station Sariya on 06.09.2022 and submitted a written complaint (Exhibit P-1) alleging that his daughter, aged 17 years and 2 months, had been enticed away by an unknown person on 04.09.2022 at about

11:30 a.m. and was missing. He further expressed suspicion that the accused, Laxman Mishra @ Pintu, had lured and abducted the victim. Acting upon the said complaint, Missing Person Report No. 25/2022 (Exhibit P-35) was registered, and Inspector Smt. Kiran Gupta (PW-13) registered the First Information Report (Exhibit P-2) in Crime No. 175/2022 under Section 363 IPC and forwarded the counter-complaint (Exhibit P-4) to the competent Court.

5. During the course of investigation, Inspector Smt. Kiran Gupta (PW-13) visited the spot and prepared a spot map (Exhibit P-3) based on the identification by the victim’s father and other witnesses. On 09.09.2022, the victim was recovered in the presence of witnesses as per the recovery memo (Exhibit P-5). In her statement recorded under Section 161 CrPC, the victim disclosed her date of birth as 24.06.2005 and stated that she had become acquainted with the accused during a visit to her maternal uncle’s village, where he resided in the neighbourhood. The accused professed his love for her and expressed his wish to marry her, but she refused on the ground that he was already married and that she herself was a minor.

6. The victim further stated that the accused threatened to defame her in the village by spreading false rumours of their relationship, which induced fear in her, compelling her to give him her mobile number. Thereafter, the accused frequently called her. On

04.09.2022, at about 11:00 a.m., he asked her to come to Sarangarh by bus for the purpose of ma