Digitally signed YOGESH by YOGESH TIWARI TIWARI Date: 2025.08.28 AFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR Judgment Reserved on : 11.08.2025 Judgment Delivered on : 28.08.2025 CRA No. 1282 of 2019 Motiram Sahu S/o Chandrika Prasad Sahu Aged About 37 Years R/o Village Doma, Police Station Mujgahan, District Raipur Chhattisgarh.

--- Appellant Versus State of Chhattisgarh Through Station House Officer, Mujgahan, District Raipur Chhattisgarh.

--- Respondent CRA No. 1375 of 2019 Deva Yadav S/o Shri Ramesh Yadav Aged About 30 Years R/o Gali No.05, Near Chanakya Complex Paras Nagar, Police Station Ganj Raipur, Tahsil And District Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

--- Appellant Versus State of Chhattisgarh Through The Police Station Mujgahan, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

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

Hon'ble Smt. Rajani Dubey, Judge Hon'ble Shri Amitendra Kishore Prasad, Judge

C A V Judgment

Per Amitendra Kishore Prasad, J.

1. Regard being had to the similitude of the questions of facts and law involved being arising out of a common crime vide impugned judgment dated 29.07.2019 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge (F.T.C.), Raipur, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh in Special Sessions Trial No.12/2018, these appeals have been clubbed together, heard together and are being decided by this common judgment.

2. Appellant-Deva Yadav (A-1) has preferred CRA No.1375/2019 and Appellant-Motiram Sahu has preferred CRA No.1282/2019 under Section 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short, “Cr.P.C.”) questioning the impugned judgment dated 29.07.2019 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge (F.T.C.), Raipur, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh in Special Sessions Trial No.12/2018, by which, both the appellants/accused have been convicted and sentenced as under :-

Appellant – Deva Yadav Act, 2012 imprisonment for 02 years.

Appellant – Motiram Sahu

3. Brief facts of the case are that, on 01/12/2017, the prosecutrix lodged a First Information Report (Ex. P-10) at Police Station Mujgahan stating that she resided in village Ganiyari and had studied up to class VIII. On 30/11/2017, being angry with her mother, she had left her house at about 12–01 PM to go to her aunt Pinky’s house at Bhilai. She had travelled from Ganiyari to Bangoli in a bullock cart and then reached Lodhipara Chowk, Raipur, at about 2:00 PM in an auto from Bangoli. While searching for an auto to Bhilai, she met the accused Deva, an auto driver, who offered to take her to Bhilai Power House. Instead of going there, he roamed around and took another route, stopping near a garden where his friend, co-accused Moti, followed on a motorcycle. At about 09–10 PM, both accused consumed alcohol near the deserted spot. The prosecutrix, out of fear, remained seated in the auto. Thereafter, accused Deva forcibly removed her clothes, slapped her, carried her to the veranda of the garden, and committed rape, along with acts of physical assault such as pressing her breast, kissing, and biting. When Moti received a call and called out to Deva, she learned their names. Taking advantage of Deva’s brief absence, she wore her clothes, took Deva’s mobile, escaped by jumping over a curtain, and sustained injuries to her thigh and knee. She sought help at nearby houses, narrating the incident to residents. One elderly couple called the police, who arrived and took her to safety.

4. Based on her report, Crime No.263/2017 was registered under Sections 376 and 34 of hte Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, “IPC’) and Sections 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (for short, ‘POCSO Act’). Statement of the prosecutrix was recorded, she was medically examined, and her frock and a mobile phone were seized (Exs. P-12, P-13). Documents regarding her minority were collected from her mother and the primary school records (Exs. P-16, P-26).

5. Upon finding sufficient evidence, the police arrested both accused (Exs. P-07, P-08). The medical examination of accused Deva