Odisha: Puri Pocso court acquits man of rape charge for lack of evidence

CUTTACK: Holding a minor rape survivor's evidence to be unreliable in the absence of material corroboration, a Pocso court in Puri recently acquitted a 36-year-old man of rape charge.

The trial was based on an FIR filed by the girl's mother on Oct 6, 2016 in which she accused the man of maintaining physical relationship with the rape survivor for a year under the false promise of marriage.

Charges were framed against the accused on Apr 25, 2017.

Additional public prosecutor Bahana Parida represented the prosecution, while advocate Debadutta Kanungo represented the accused.

Delivering the judgment on Sept 12, Justice Ramanath Panda said, "As the girl's sole evidence without corroboration is held to be unreliable due to want of corroboration, I am of the considered opinion that the evidence adduced by the prosecution is not sufficient to bring the accused within the fold of the charges levelled against him."

Justice Panda felt the prosecution has failed to establish the charges levelled against the accused beyond all reasonable doubt.

"I hold the accused not guilty and acquit him therefrom as per the provision of Section 235(1) of the CrPC," Justice Panda ruled.

Judge questions delay in reporting incident
The accused, who was arrested on Oct 7, 2016, was released on bail on July 20, 2017.

The judge further noted that the evidence regarding the alleged sexual assault prior to the filing of the FIR required corroboration from circumstantial evidence.

"However, the evidence presented was riddled with contradictions and discrepancies, making the survivor's sole testimony unreliable in the absence of material corroboration," the judge observed.

The judge also questioned why the survivor, a 17-year-old girl at the time of the alleged assault, did not disclose the incident to her mother, and why her mother, despite being aware of the relationship, remained silent.

The judge concluded that the delay in reporting the incident and the lack of corroboration from witnesses suggested that the FIR was likely filed due to the failure of the planned marriage between the accused and the girl.