Well being of children has a direct bearing on growth of society as they are a “supremely important asset”, a Delhi court has observed while sending a youth to three years in jail for sexually assaulting a six-year-old girl.
Additional Sessions Judge Gautam Manan handed down the jail term to 23-year-old Jitender, a flour mill worker, while holding him guilty of offences under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Concept of welfare and well being of children is basic for any civilized society and this has a direct bearing on the state of health and well being of the entire community, its growth and development. It has been time and again emphasised in legislation, international declarations as well as judicial pronouncements that children are a ‘supremely important national asset’ and the future well being of the nation depends on how its children grow and develop.The Judge
The court, which refused to take a lenient view and relied on victim’s testimony, said the nature of offence committed by the convict does not demand that he be released on probation and also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on him.
It also directed the District Legal Service Authority to provide one lakh rupees as compensation to the victim as restorative and compensatory justice.
Testimony of the victim, with relation to the incident, is reassuring as she has been consistent throughout in describing what the accused did to her.The Court
The court also observed that the child’s testimony could not be rejected merely because her statement was not recorded before the magistrate under section 164 of CrPC.
A reaction to a situation cannot be expected to be same for all humans. Being a witness to a traumatic or violent event can have a very deep impact on people, especially children. Even if child may not be physically hurt or involved in the event still he could be psychologically affected by a traumatic experience. Hence, prosecution could not be faulted in view of the fact that victim was terrified and under lot of stress after the incident of sexual assault upon her.The court
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