HASHAM UMARALI @ BABU SHAIKH Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present appeal has been preferred by the appellant - accused, being aggrieved by the judgment of conviction and order of sentence passed by the Special Judge, Uttara Kannada, Karwar (hereinafter referred to as the Trial Court) in Special Case No.26/2014 dated 11.07.2017, whereunder the accused was convicted for the offences punishable under Sections 376 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter referred to as 'IPC') and under Sections 3(1)(xii) and 3(2)(v) of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as 'SC & ST Act'). The appellant - accused is acquitted for the offences punishable under Sections 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (hereinafter referred to as 'POCSO Act').

(2.) We have heard the learned counsel Sri.K.M.Shiralli for the appellant - accused and the learned Additional S.P.P. Sri.V.M.Banakar for the respondent - State.

(3.) The case of the prosecution in brief is that the victim - complainant, who was minor, was belonging to scheduled caste. It is further alleged that she was studying in 8th standard and during school holidays, she used to go to the house of the accused for cleaning and cutting of cashew nuts. When the complainant used to go to the house of the accused, he used to tease her and was behaving indecently by putting his hands over her body. It is further alleged that on 02.02.2014, as it was a Sunday, at about 02:30 p.m., when the victim had been to the house of the accused for breaking cashew nuts, nobody was there in the house and at that time, accused with an intention to fulfill his sexual desire, told the complainant that there are some cashew seeds in the bathroom and asked her to go inside and break them. Believing the words of the accused, the complainant went inside. Subsequently, accused also came inside and told her that he will not leave her and committed penetrative sexual assault on her. Thereafter, accused gave life threat not to inform the said incident to anybody else. Subsequently, the complainant became pregnant. By noticing the change in the body structure of the victim, the mother of the victim made enquiry and she came to know about the act of the accused and as such, the complaint was registered. On the basis of the complaint, a case was registered in Crime No.118/2014 of Sirsi Rural P.S. and after investigation, the charge sheet was filed.