Controversy over a Bombay HC's decision

  • Recently, the Bombay High Court acquitted a man of sexual assault charges under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for groping a child.
  • He was instead convicted him under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for a lesser offence. 
  • The ruling drew large criticism for its restricted interpretation of the offence. 

BACKGROUND

  • The culprit 39-year-old Bandu Ragde was accused of luring the 12- year old girl to his house on the pretext of giving her a guava, and pressing her breast and attempting to remove her salwar. 
  • The sessions court convicted Bandu Ragde under Section 8 of the POCSO Act, and sentenced him to three years in jail. 

HC DECISION

  • The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court reversed the decision of a sessions court of Conviction under POCSO. 
  • It acquitted the accused of charges under Section 8 (punishment for sexual assault) of the POCSO Act.
  • However, HC upheld the conviction under IPC section 354 (Outraging the modesty of a woman) which carry a lesser minimum sentence of one year. 
  • Justice Pushpa Ganediwala's single bench held that there must be "skin to skin contact with sexual intention without penetration“ for an act to be considered sexual assault. 
  • She said “mere groping will not fall under the definition of sexual assault under Section 7 the POCSO Act.”
  • The ruling has drawn severe criticism for its restricted interpretation of the offence.
MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE
  • Section 8 of the POCSO Act carries a sentence of rigorous imprisonment of three to five years and imposing the minimum sentence is mandatory. 
  • Where a statute has prescribed a minimum sentence, courts do not have the discretion to pass lighter sentences irrespective of any specific circumstances that the case or the convict might present.
  • A mandatory sentence is prescribed to underline the seriousness of the offence, and is often claimed to act as a deterrent to crime.
  • Mandatory minimum sentences are also prescribed in some cases to remove the scope for arbitrariness by judges using their discretion. 
  • It is criticized as some studies have shown that mandatory sentencing in laws lead to fewer convictions, 
  • This is because when judges perceive that the punishment for the offence is harsh, they might prefer to acquit the accused.

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