SEENUVASAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Criminal Appeal has been filed to call for the records and to set aside the judgment and sentence dtd. 29/6/2011, passed by the Principal Sessions Judge, Cuddalore in S.C.No.48 of 2009.

(2.) It is the case of the prosecution that the appellant deflowered Jothilakshmi (P.W.1) on the promise of marrying her and reneged; on the complaint (Ex.P1) lodged by Jothilakshmi (P.W.1), Vijayakumar (P.W.18) Inspector of Police, Nellikuppam Police Station, registered a case in Crime No.914 of 2007, on 9/4/2007, for the offences under Ss. 417 and 376 IPC r/w. Sec. 3(1)(xii) of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Attrocities) Act, 1989 (for brevity ''SC and ST Act''), against the appellant and prepared the printed FIR (Ex.P13); Stephen Jesupatham, (P.W.19), Deputy Superintendent of Police, Panruti, took up the investigation of the case in Crime No.914 of 2007; went to the place of occurrence and prepared the Observation Mahazar (Ex.P2) in the presence of one Gunasekaran (P.W.6) and Jeganathan (not examined); he prepared the rough sketch (Ex.P14); he recorded the statements of various witnesses and applied to the Tahsildar, Panruti, for the issuance of community certificate for the appellant and Jothilakshmi (P.W.1); Luke, (P.W.11), the Tahsildar, issued community certificate (Ex.P3) stating that, the appellant belongs to Padayachi community (caste Hindu) and Jothi Lakshmi (P.W.1) belongs to Adi Dravidar community, falling within the meaning of SC and ST Act; he arrested the accused on 22/12/2007 and produced him before the jurisdictional Magistrate, for judicial custody; he made an application (Ex.P15) to the Judicial Magistrate No.I, Cuddalore, for sending Jothilakshmi (P.W.1) for medical examination; Jothilakshmi (P.W.1) was medically examined by Dr.Vidya (P.W.13) and radiological test was conducted by Dr.Natarajan (P.W.15), who has determined the age of P.W.1 as ''completed 17 years and not completed 18 years'', vide Ex.P8; Avinesh Kumar (P.W.20), Deputy Superintendent of Police, continued the investigation further and made arrangements to have the appellant medically examined by Dr. Srinivasan (P.W.16), who, in his evidence, as well in the report Ex.P12, has stated as follows:-

(3.) After examining the doctors and collecting the reports, Avinesh Kumar (P.W.20) completed the investigation and filed final report, for the offences under Ss. 417 and 376 IPC and Sec. 3(1)(xii) of SC and ST Act, before the Judicial Magistrate No.I, Cuddalore in PRC No.42 of 2008. On the appearance of the appellant, he was supplied with the copies of the relied upon documents and the case was committed to the Court of Session (Special Sessions Court constituted under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989). The trial Court framed charges for the offences under Ss. 417 and 376 IPC and Sec. 3(1)(xii) of SC and ST Act, against the appellant. When questioned, the appellant pleaded ''not guilty''. To prove the case, the prosecution examined 20 witnesses and marked 15 Exhibits. When the appellant was questioned under Sec. 313 Cr.P.C., about the incriminating circumstances appearing against him, he denied the same. No witness was examined, nor any document marked, on the side of the appellant.