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2023 0 Supreme(Gau) 1208 : Under Section 29 of the POCSO Act, there is a legal presumption that the accused knew or must have known the age of the victim. This presumption places the burden on the defense to rebut it. Therefore, the accused cannot successfully take the defense that he was unaware of the victim''''s age, as the law presumes knowledge of the victim''''s minor status.Checking relevance for Ramchandra Thangappan Aachari VS State of Maharashtra...

2022 0 Supreme(Bom) 2003 : In a case charged under the POCSO Act, the accused cannot successfully take the defense that he was unaware of the victim''''s age. The court explicitly rejected the appellant''''s claim of lack of knowledge about the victim''''s age, holding that such a defense is not acceptable under the law. The ratio decidendi confirms that the reliability of age determination evidence is crucial, and the accused''''s ignorance of the victim''''s age does not constitute a valid defense in POCSO cases.Checking relevance for K. Onlen, S/o Late Tingjalal Kuki VS State Of Nagaland...

2024 0 Supreme(Gau) 930 : The court held that the defense''''s failure to challenge the victim''''s age during the trial precluded them from raising it on appeal, indicating that the accused cannot successfully take the defense of unawareness of the victim''''s age when the defense did not raise the issue at trial. This implies that the accused cannot rely on ignorance of the victim''''s age as a valid defense, especially when the prosecution has established the victim''''s age through credible and consistent evidence, and the defense did not object to it during the trial.Checking relevance for Raushan Kumar, S/o. Naresh Paswan VS State of Bihar...

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2020 0 Supreme(Bom) 1213 : The court held that the accused''''s knowledge of the victim''''s age was immaterial in determining guilt under the POCSO Act and the Indian Penal Code. This means that even if the accused was unaware of the victim''''s age, it does not constitute a valid defense under the law.

• Unawareness of Victim’s Age as a Defense - Under the POCSO Act, the accused cannot simply claim ignorance of the victim’s age as a defense. The law presumes that the age of the victim is a critical element, and the prosecution must prove that the victim was a child (below 18 years) at the time of the offence. The burden shifts to the accused to rebut this presumption with cogent evidence if they wish to challenge the age ["2025 Supreme(Online)(Del) 7144"], ["2024 Supreme(Online)(Chh) 15798"].

• Legal Presumption and Burden of Proof - Section 29 of the POCSO Act creates a statutory presumption that the accused knew or was negligent regarding the victim’s age, placing the onus on the accused to prove otherwise. The courts have held that mere ignorance of the victim’s age is insufficient as a defense; the accused must produce credible evidence to establish their lack of knowledge ["2025 Supreme(Online)(Del) 7144"].

• Judicial Stance on Age and Defense - Courts have consistently emphasized that the age of the victim is an essential ingredient of the offence. If the prosecution proves the victim was a minor, the offence under POCSO is established regardless of the accused’s ignorance of the age. The burden of proving innocence or lack of knowledge remains on the accused, and failure to do so leads to conviction ["2024 Supreme(Online)(Chh) 15798"], ["2025 Supreme(Online)(Guj) 3940"].

• Exceptions and Circumstances - While the law presumes knowledge of age, a defendant may attempt to prove they were unaware, but this requires convincing, credible evidence. Simply claiming ignorance is generally not sufficient to absolve liability under POCSO ["2025 Supreme(Online)(Del) 7144"].

Analysis and Conclusion:In cases charged under the POCSO Act, the accused cannot rely solely on the defense of being unaware of the victim’s age. The law presumes such knowledge, and the accused bears the burden to rebut this presumption with credible evidence. Courts have consistently held that proof of the victim’s minor status is a crucial element, and mere ignorance does not constitute a valid defense. Therefore, unless the accused can substantiate their claim of ignorance with convincing evidence, they cannot successfully take the defense that they were unaware of the victim’s age.