HEMRAJ CHAUDHARY Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Being aggrieved by the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dtd. 24/6/2010 passed by the Special Judge (SC/ST) Jabalpur in Sessions Trial No.193 of 2009 whereby the appellant has been convicted under Ss. 342 and 376(f) of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced to undergo R.I. for one year and fine of Rs.1000.00 and R.I. for Life and fine of Rs.1000.00 respectively with default stipulation, the present appeal under Sec. 374(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure has been preferred.

(2.) The prosecution story, in nutshell, is that on 18/1/2009 at about 7:00 pm when the victim who was aged about 12 years was going to take water along with her friend Saraswati, the appellant/accused caught hold of her hands, dragged her to his house and committed rape on her. She immediately reported the incident to her mother. An FIR has been registered and the victim was sent for medical examination to the hospital and admitted in the hospital. After investigation, a charge-sheet has been filed before the Court. After trial, the appellant/accused has been convicted and sentenced as indicated hereinabove.

(3.) This appeal has been filed on the ground that there are material contradictions and omissions in the statements of the prosecution witnesses. It is argued that the learned trial court has convicted the appellant for the offence under Sec. 376(f) of the Indian Penal Code, which in terms of the previous law provides for a punishment of rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years but which may be extended for life and shall also be liable to fine. He has drawn attention of this court to paragraph 9 of the judgment wherein a finding has been recorded that the age of the victim on the date of commission of offence was between 12-14 years. He has further pointed out that in paragraphs No.25 and 27 of the judgment, the learned trial court has observed that the age of the victim is approximately 12 years. It is argued that once the age of the victim is found to be more than 12 years then conviction under Sec. 376(f) of the Indian Penal Code for life imprisonment will not be maintainable as the case of the appellant does not fall under category 376(f) of the Indian Penal Code. The aforesaid aspect was not properly appreciated by the learned trial court and a harsh punishment for life imprisonment has been imposed upon the appellant.