IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD R/CRIMINAL APPEAL (AGAINST CONVICTION) NO. 1054 of 2014 FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:

HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA and HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P. M. RAVAL ==========================================================

Approved for Reporting Yes No ==========================================================

AARIF RASULBHAI MANSURI PINJARA (MUSALMAN)

Versus STATE OF GUJARAT ==========================================================

Appearance:

MR. MAULIK M SONI(7249) for the Appellant(s) No. 1 MR LB DABHI APP for the Respondent ==========================================================

CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA and HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P. M. RAVAL Date : 11/08/2025

ORAL JUDGMENT

(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA)

1. The correctness of the judgment and order of sentence dated

31.07.2014 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Dahod is questioned in this appeal. By the impugned judgment, the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Dahod convicted and sentenced the appellant – accused Aarif Mansuri, under Sections 363, 366, and 376 of the Indian Penal Code and under Sections 3(1)(xi), 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)

Act, 1989, and sentenced to suffer the imprisonment as per the below scheduled:

2. The facts, leading to the present appeal are as follows:

(1) An FIR came to be registered with Devghad Bariya Police Station, Dahod being C.R.No.195 of 2012, at the behest of PW:2 Somabhai Vankar, inter alia, alleging that the appellant accused being his tenant, had kidnapped his minor daughter aged about 14 years and 6 months, with an intention to illicit intercourse, when she along with her friend PW:5, were on the way to attend the high school. According to the case of the prosecution, on 05.11.2012 at about 10:00 a.m., the victim was forced to sit in a rickshaw by holding her hand and was taken by the accused in the rickshaw from Village Sagarama and then, accused along with the victim proceeded to Ahmedabad by public transport. After arrival at Ahmedabad, the victim taken to the Sunny Hotel nearby the bus-stand where during the night hours, the appellant forcefully rapped upon her for multiple times. PW:2 the father and family members worried about the victim as she did not return back till evening. He contacted the wife of the appellant, but she was clueless and the mobile of the appellant was found switch-off.

(2) The Dahod Police transmitted the information about the incident to the Police Station, across the State and based on the said input, the Ahmedabad Police raided the hotel where the appellant caught red- handed along with the victim. The accused then brought to the Dahod Police Station. On the basis of FIR, he was arrested. The I.O. PW:15 being a Dy.S.P. was entrusted to the investigation of the case. During the investigation, he sent the victim for medical examination, seized her clothes, sent the accused for medical examination and also seized her clothes, the panchnama which had been drawn by the Ahmedabad Police at the hotel kept with case papers, recorded the statements of the witnesses, collected the evidence of age, sent the seized articles for chemical analysis, obtained the report of FSL, and thereafter, the chargesheet came to be filed against the accused for the offences, as referred above. The Jurisdictional Magistrate committed the case to the Court of Sessions.

3. The Sessions Court framed the charge against the appellant accused upon pleaded not guilty by the accused.

4. In order to prove the charge, the prosecution has examined as many as 15 witnesses and exhibited 20 documents:

Oral evidence