MUKESH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE present appeal arises out of the judgment of conviction dated 12.2.2008 and order on sentence dated 14.02.2008, where under the appellant was convicted under Sections 363/376/34 IPC in S.C.No. 267/06 arising out of FIR No.492/2005 registered with PS New Ashok Nagar, Delhi.

(2.) THE incident, subject matter of the aforesaid judgment, occurred on 07.11.2005, when the prosecutrix who was a few days below 12 years, left for school and did not return home that day. As a result, her father lodged an FIR with the police. Subsequently, the father of the prosecutrix along with his brother and his nephew went to a village near Khatoli, U.P. and found the prosecutrix and the appellant in the house of the appellant's married sister. THEy were brought to Delhi and sent for a medical examination, which revealed that the prosecutrix had been sexually assaulted.

(3.) COUNSEL for the appellant stated at the outset that the appellant did not propose to assail the impugned order of conviction on merits and confined his submissions to the order of sentence by requesting that the appellant be released by reducing the sentence to the period already undergone by him or to a lesser period. He stated that the appellant is disabled as he has a limp in his leg, a fact which has also been confirmed by PW-2 (complainant/father of the prosecutrix) in his testimony. The father of the appellant expired last year and now his family comprises of only himself and his two elder brothers. He stated that the conduct of the appellant in jail has been exemplary and he has been supervising the team working in the Tailoring Department of Tihar Jail. It is submitted that the appellant is a first time offender with clean antecedents and without any criminal history.