THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE N.TUKARAMJI Criminal Petition No.11980 of 2024

ORDER

This Criminal Petition is filed under Section 528 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short ‘the BNSS’) for quashment of proceedings in S.C. POCSO No.140 of 2024 on the file of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (for short, ‘POCSO’) Court, at HACA Bhavan, Hyderabad.

2. I have heard Mr.Bethi Venkateshwarlu, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr.Jithender Rao Veeramalla, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, representing the respondent No.1-State and Mr. L.Ram Singh, learned counsel for the respondent No.3.

3. The petitioner is arrayed as accused in S.C. POCSO No.140 of 2024 for the offences under Sections 366, 376(2)(n) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (for short, ‘the IPC’) and Section 6 r/w 5(j)(ii) of POCSO Act, 2012.

4. Brief facts of the case are that Respondent No. 2, the father of the victim girl, lodged a complaint alleging that his minor daughter, P. Swapna, went missing from her college on 12.06.2023 and that the petitioner had abducted the missing girl.

Based on these findings, the police charged the petitioner with offences of abduction and sexual assault. The petitione