AMANAT Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This conviction Appeal is directed against the judgment and order dtd. 24/6/2010, passed by the learned Special Judge, FTC, Court No. 2, Bhavnagar, by which, the appellant - sole accused Amanat @ Patiyo Safarbhai Shaikh, has been convicted for the offence punishable under Ss. 376, 452, 506(2) of the Indian Penal Code and Sec. 3(1)(xi) & (xii) of the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 7 years with fine of Rs.5000.00 and in default, additional simple imprisonment for 1 year for the offence under Sec. 376 and sentenced to undergo R.I for 1 year with fine of Rs.1000.00 and in default thereof to undergo 3 months S.I. for the offence under Sec. 3(1)(xi) and (xii). So far as Sec. 452 and 506(2) are concerned, no separate sentence is imposed.

(2.) This Court has heard learned counsel Ms. Poonam Mehta, Mr. Dhruv Dave and Ms. Chetna Shah, learned State counsel for the respective parties.

(3.) The prosecution case in brief was that, the prosecutrix PW-1 Exh.6, is belonged to SCST caste. The complaint of rape, assault and outrage her modesty was filed on 13/8/2006. In the complaint, it was alleged inter-alia that, her husband was serving in a railway hospital at Bhavnagar and she used to go to provide her husband a tiffin at the hospital, for which, she ordinarily hired the passenger rickshaw nearby the vicinity of her house. The accused appellant was driving the passenger rickshaw and she used to hire the said rickshaw to reach the railway hospital and in that process, she came into contact with the appellant accused, as a result, intimate relations were developed and that would continue upto 2 years and during the said period, they entered into physical relationship. In these background facts, she had alleged in the FIR that, under one or other pretext, the appellant used to come her house and asked her for sexual favour and on refusing to it, she was forced to have a physical relationship.