Supreme Court Yearly Digest 2022- POCSO Act

Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Act, 2012 - Any act of sexual assault or sexual harassment to the children should be viewed very seriously and all such offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment on the children have to be dealt with in a stringent manner - Cases of sexual assault or sexual harassment on the children are instances of perverse lust for sex where even innocent children are not spared in pursuit of such debased sexual pleasure. (Para 10) Nawabuddin v. State of Uttarakhand, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 142 : AIR 2022 SC 910 : (2022) 5 SCC 419

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 - Appeal against HC order that granted bail to POCSO Accused who allegedly raped and murdered his 11 year old daughter - Allowed - Ex facie, the allegations are grave, the punishment is severe and it cannot be said that there are no materials on record at all - Order set aside. Indresh Kumar v. State of Uttar Pradesh, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 610

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 - Appeal against Kerala HC order which granted conditional anticipatory bail to POCSO Accused who allegedly sexually assaulted his minor neice - Allowed - The fact that the victim – girl is traumatized to such a high degree that her academic pursuits have been adversely impacted alone, coupled with the legislative intent especially reflected through Section 29 of the POCSO Act, are sufficient to dissuade a Court from exercising its discretionary jurisdiction in granting pre­arrest bail. X v. Arun Kumar C.K., 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 870

Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Act, 2012 - No leniency can be shown to an accused who has committed the offences under the POCSO Act, 2012 and particularly when the same is proved by adequate evidence before a court of law - By awarding a suitable punishment commensurate with the act of sexual assault, sexual harassment, a message must be conveyed to the society at large that, if anybody commits any offence under the POCSO Act of sexual assault, sexual harassment or use of children for pornographic purposes they shall be punished suitably and no leniency shall be shown to them. (Para 10) Nawabuddin v. State of Uttarakhand, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 142 : AIR 2022 SC 910 : (2022) 5 SCC 419

Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Act, 2012 - Section 3(b) - Penetrative sexual assault - When it has been established and proved that the accused penetrated his finger in the vagina and because of that the victim girl felt pain and irritation in urination as well as pain on her body and there was redness and swelling around the vagina found by the doctor, the case would fall under Section 3(b) of the POCSO Act. (Para 8) Nawabuddin v. State of Uttarakhand, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 142 : AIR 2022 SC 910 : (2022) 5 SCC 419

Protection of Child from Sexual Offences Act, 2012; Section 5, 6 - Conviction of accused set aside after noticing that he married the victim and has two children - Court cannot shut its eyes to the ground reality and disturb the happy family life of the appellant and the prosecutrix. We have been informed about the custom in Tamilnadu of the marriage of a girl with the maternal uncle. Dhandapani v. State, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 477

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, Section 6 - Once, prima facie, it appears from the material before the Court that the appellant was barely thirteen years of age on the date when the alleged offence took place, both the grounds, namely that "there was a love affair" between the appellant and the second respondent as well as the alleged refusal to marry, are circumstances which will have no bearing on the grant of bail. Having regard to the age of the prosecutrix and the nature and gravity of the crime, no case for the grant of bail was established. The order of the High Court granting bail has to be interfered with since the circumstances which prevailed with the High Court are extraneous in view of the age of the prosecutrix, having regard to the provisions of Section 376 of IPC and Section 6 of POCSO. X (Minor) v. State of Jharkhand, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 194

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012; Section 19(1) - When a minor approaches a Registered Medical Practitioner for a medical termination of pregnancy arising out of a consensual sexual activity, an RMP is obliged to provide information to concerned authorities – Supreme Court states that the RMP need not disclose the identity and other personal details of the minor in the information. (Para 79, 80, 81) X vs Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department, Govt of NCT Of Delhi, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 809 : AIR 2022 SC 4917

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012; Section 19(1), 21 - Non-reporting of sexual assault against a minor child despite knowledge is a serious crime and more often than not, it is an attempt to shield the offenders of the crime of sexual assault - Prompt and proper reporting of the commission of offence under the POCSO Act is of utmost importance and we have no hesitation to state that its failure on coming to know about the commission of any offence thereunder would defeat the very purpose and object of the Act. (Para 12-15, 22) State of Maharashtra v. Dr. Maroti Kashinath Pimpalkar, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 898 : AIR 2022 SC 5595

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012; Section 23 - Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973; Section 155(2) - Whether Section 155(2) Cr.P.C. will apply to the investigation of an offence under Section 23 of POCSO Act - Divergent views by judges in the Division Bench - Registry directed to place the matter before CJI for assignment before an appropriate Bench. Gangadhar Narayan Nayak @ Gangadhar Hiregutti v. State of Karnataka, 2022 LiveLaw (SC) 301 : 2022 (5) SCALE 119