Justice Pushpa Ganediwala of the Bombay High Court, who had come into the limelight due to her controversial judgments in two sexual harassment cases, resigned from office on Thursday, 10 February.
Her resignation comes merely two days before the end of her tenure on 12 February, reported Bar and Bench.
In January 2021, the Supreme Court collegium had withdrawn its approval to a proposal for the appointment of additional judge Justice Ganediwala as a permanent judge of the Bonbay High Court following her two contentious verdicts.
Instead, she was given a fresh term as an additional judge at the Bombay High Court for one year. Once her tenure would have ended, Justice Ganediwala would have been sent back to the district judiciary.
Justice Ganediwala’s interpretation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in two cases had held that if there is “no direct physical contact,” or “skin-to-skin contact” between the accused and the victim, it will not amount to sexual assault.
In an order delivered on 19 January 2021, the judge had ruled that the act of pressing the breast of a 12-year-old child without removing her top will not fall within the definition of ‘sexual assault’ under Section 7 of the POCSO Act – a ruling that had come to be known as the 'skin-to-skin' judgment and had elicited public outrage.
In another case, Justice Ganediwala had ruled that holding the hands of a five-year-old girl while unzipping the trousers do not amount to an offence of sexual assault under the POCSO Act.
The contentious judgments had subsequently been overturned by the Supreme Court.
(With inputs from Bar and Bench.)
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