BETSTARLING BASAN Vs. STATE OF MEGHALAYA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant was charged with the commission of an offence under Sec. 3(a) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 for an incident that took place on November 21, 2012. The appellant claims that despite no evidence of penetration being produced, he has been convicted for rape. The additional ground canvassed is that the trial court completely altered the charges and added additional charges after the recording of the evidence was over.

(2.) Indeed, the appellant here made an application for crossexamining the prosecution witnesses upon the additional charges being framed. The appellant here contended that the last witness had been examined by the court on October 5, 2021 and it was only on December 8, 2021 that the trial court found it expedient to add charges under Sec. 375 read with Ss. 354, 354A and 354B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 together with charges under Ss. 7 and 8 of the Act of 2012 read with Ss. 319, 321 and 323 of the Penal Code. The application for further cross-examination of the prosecution witnesses was rejected by an order dated June 10/6/2022, less than a fortnight before the matter was set down for final arguments.

(3.) In the short order of June 10, 2022, the trial court recorded the submission of the parties, noticed a few Supreme Court judgments that instruct that a trial court may add to or alter the charges at any time during the trial and, finally, declined the request on the ground that no prejudice had been occasioned to the appellant herein upon the addition of the charges.