[POCSO] Man gets 3-year jail term for molesting minor and her visually impaired aunt in Mumbai local

A special court in Mumbai recently sentenced a 33-year-old man to three years of rigorous imprisonment after finding him guilty of molesting a minor girl and her visually impaired aunt on a local train [The State of Maharashtra v. Mohsin Allauddin Chougule]..While doing so, Special Judge under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act AD Deo made note of the prevalence of such events.“...unwelcome, inappropriate touch by the male accused, in journey, is a very common sexual assault experienced by every common woman traveling in public transport, but ignored by each one of them, thinking that there is no likelihood of coming across, the same assailant after the journey. Hence, almost all such assaults go unreported,” the Court observed..As per the prosecution case, the minor was travelling in the compartment for the handicapped of a Mumbai local train as an escort of her visually impaired aunt. When the train passed the Ghatkopar station, the informant and her aunt went towards the right side door. The informant was standing near the door, when she heard the voice of her aunt and saw her slapping a person. Upon enquiry, her aunt told her that the person had inappropriately touched her breast. The minor was also told that he did the same thing to her when passing by her. Fellow passengers in the compartment then accosted the accused and his co-passenger and took them to Kurla Police Station. The accused pleaded not guilty and claimed that he was falsely implicated..The Court, however, found no value in his arguments. After going through evidence and the testimonies of witnesses, the Court concluded:- Minor discrepancies are not to be given undue emphasis and evidence is to be considered from the point of view of trustworthiness;- The culpable intention of the accused is the crux of the matter and the reaction of the woman, is very relevant;- Conviction can be recorded on the sole, uncorroborated testimony of a victim provided it does not suffer from any basic infirmities or improbabilities which render it unworthy of credence;- In the present case the testimony of PW1/victim and PW2 appears to be cogent, reliable and worthy of credence. It is undisputed that the accused and the victims did not have any previous enmity between them or victims hatched conspiracy, to malign the reputation of the accused, to falsely implicate him;- Section 30 of the POCSO Act contemplates presumption of culpable mental state. Accused failed to rebut the presumption under Section 30 of the Act.- The essence of a woman's modesty is her womanhood;- Accused could not produce any disability certificate to make him entitled for traveling in handicap compartment..The accused was thus convicted under under Section 8 (punishment for sexual assault) of POCSO Act, Section 354 (outraging the modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 91 (punishment for fraudulently availing any benefit meant for persons with benchmark disabilities) of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016..On the point of sentencing, the accused asked the Court for leniency given that his widowed mother was financially reliant on him and he was a first-time offender.While observing that it has a duty to impose a proper punishment depending on the degree of criminality, the Court sentenced him to three years in prison. However, the Court held that he was entitled to set-off as per Section 428 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which provides that the period of detention already undergone by the accused will be set off against the sentence.A total fine of ₹35,000 was also imposed, out of which ₹10,000 each was directed to be paid to both the complainants as compensation..Special Public Prosecutor Jyoti Sawant appeared for the State. Advocate Pujari represented the accused..[Read Judgment].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.