JUDGMENT :

ASHOK BHUSHAN, J.

Leave granted.

2. This appeal has been filed by the accused challenging the judgment of the High Court dated 06.08.2019 by which Criminal Appeal No. 1121 of 2012 filed by the appellant questioning his conviction and sentence under Section 364A IPC has been dismissed.

3. The prosecution case in brief is :-

3.1 The victim, PW-2 Prateek Gupta, was a student in VIth standard in St. Mary’s High School, Rezimental Banzar, Secunderabad, Hyderabad. On 03.02.2011, PW-2 went to a picnic organised by the school and returned to school at around 3:00 pm. Usually, PW-2 would wait for a regular (fixed) auto to drop him home from school but unfortunately on the said date, the same did not turn up.

3.2 PW-2 waited till about 4.00 pm and thereafter PW-2 phoned his father (PW-1) from the cell phone of his school teacher (PW-3). PW-1 instructed PW-2 to take another auto to go home. PW-1 engaged the services of an auto driven by the accused (appellant herein) to take him home and boarded the auto.

3.3 Thereafter, the accused took him from an unknown route by informing PW-2 it is a short cut and took him to some unknown place by promising that he would call PW-1 and ascertain the c