CHANDAN GIRI MAHANT Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Present appeal is instituted against the judgment and order dated 01.02.2016/06.02.2016, passed by the Special Judge, POCSO, Almora, in Special Sessions Trial No.17 of 2015, whereby the accused/appellant, who was charged with and tried for the offences under Section 363, 366, 376(2)(i) of the I.P.C. and Section 3 read with Section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (hereinafter to be referred as 'the POCSO Act'), was convicted for the offences of Section 376(2)(i) I.P.C. and Section 3 r/w Section 4 of the POCSO Act, but he was sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of seven years and to pay a fine of Rs.5000/- and in default of payment of fine, to undergo simple imprisonment for a further period of two months, only under Section 4 of the POCSO Act.

(2.) Appellant/accused was, however, acquitted from the charge of offence punishable under Sections 363 and 366 of the I.P.C.

(3.) Case of the prosecution, in a nutshell, is that the maternal uncle of the prosecutrix moved an application Ex.Ka-3 to Station Officer, Dwarahat, informing that his niece (name withheld) was about 16 years of age. She was a student of Class XII studying in Government Inter College, Kausani; she had gone to attend the NCC Camp on 04.07.2015. He enquired from one Ms. Nirmala Rawat, who told him that his niece (the victim), after moving an application to the authority concerned, left the camp with the accused Mahant Chandan Giri. He came to know that the accused, along with the victim, stayed in Hotel Trishool at Gwaldam on 12.07.2015 as husband and wife.