STATE OF KARNATAKA Vs. NAYEEM ZAFFAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The State has filed this appeal under Sec. 378 (1) & (3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as "the Cr.P.C ."), challenging the judgment of acquittal dtd. 5/3/2018, passed by the learned I Additional District and Sessions Judge, Ballari, (hereinafter for brevity referred to as the "the Special Judge's Court") in Special Case No.54/2015, acquitting the accused of the offences punishable under Sec. 376 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as "the IPC ") and under Ss. 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as "the POCSO Act").

(2.) The summary of the case of the prosecution in the Special Judge's Court was that, on the date 1/3/2015 at about 5:45 p.m., when CW-2 (the alleged victim) the minor daughter of the complainant had been to the house of the accused, situated at Vattappageri Street, Cowl Bazaar, Ballari, within the limits of the complainant Police Station, to ask and take back a sum of Rs.10.00, which was said to have been given to the father of the accused, at that time, the accused, who was alone present in the house, asked the victim girl to get some drinking water to him. Thus, when the victim went near the water drum, the accused caught hold of her, tying her eyes and mouth with cloth, kissed her private parts and committed sexual assault on her and thereby committed the offences punishable under Sec. 376 of the IPC and under Ss. 4 and 6 of the POCSO Act.

(3.) Charges were framed against the accused for the offences punishable under Sec. 376 of the IPC and under Ss. 4 and 6 of the POCSO Act. Since the accused pleaded not guilty, the trial was held, wherein, in order to prove the alleged guilt against the accused, the prosecution got examined in all eleven (11) witnesses as PW-1 to PW-11, got marked documents from Exs.P-1 to P-19(a) and got produced Material Objects from MO-1 to MO-17(a). From the accused's side, neither any witness was examined nor any documents were got marked as exhibits.