STATE OF KERALA Vs. HAMSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Sarasamma, a woman aged thirty seven and mother of three children, complained that the accused had misbehaved towards her, showed some gesticulations with intent to outrage her modesty and assaulted her by holding her hand in his grip. The trial magistrate convicted the accused for the offences under S.354 and 509 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced him to different terms of imprisonment under each count. On appeal the Sessions Court set aside the conviction and sentence and hence the State has preferred this appeal with special leave granted.

(2.) Sarasamma, on the date of occurrence, was a member of the staff attached to the Iritty Branch of M/s. Aditya Finance and Investments Limited. When the office work was over on the day, she went to the Iritty bus stand to catch bus to go home. While she was talking with the manager of her office (who too came there to board the bus) the accused went near her and winked his eyes at her and beckoned her with hands and also exhibited some prankish gesticulations. (The evidence shows that the accused bad displayed such prankishness to some other ladies at the same bus station on earlier occasions). Sarasamma got stunned and she remonstrated with him and told him to stop doing such vulgar exhibitions. The undaunted accused then blurted out that even her father cannot do anything against him. So saying he caught bold on her right hand. Sarasamma struggled to squirm out of his grip. When she became free she reported the matter to a police constable who was standing a little away at the same station. At the instance of the said police constable, she went to the nearest police station and lodged the First Information Statement. The police arrested the accused on the same day.

(3.) The evidence of Sarasamma was fully supported by pw. 2 who is a headload worker of Iritty Bus stand. pw. 4 is the local manager of Aditya Finance Investments Limited. He was treated by the prosecution as hostile since be did not speak to all the full details as per the case diary statement. But a reading of his testimony gives assurance of the truth of the incident. pw. 3 is the doctor who examined Sarasamma since the police directed her to go to the government hospital. pw. 3 did not see any external injury on that part of her hand which was caught hold of by the accused. The trial magistrate was very much impressed by the evidence of Sarasamma and also the testimony of the headload worker (Pw. 2). Learned Magistrate found that pw. 4 also substantially supported the prosecution case. On a consideration of the entire evidence he concluded that the prosecution has succeeded in establishing the case against the accused.