SANJAY DAS Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This criminal revision petition filed under sec. 397 read with sec. 401 Cr.P.C has been directed against the judgment and order dtd. 26/6/2015 passed by the Additional Sessions Judge (Court No.2), West Tripura, Agartala in Criminal Appeal No. 42 of 2014 affirming the conviction and sentence of the petitioner under sec. 354 IPC passed by the Judicial Magistrate First Class (Court No.4), Agartala, West Tripura on 31/3/2014 in case No. PRC 1137 of 2011 whereby the learned Judicial Magistrate convicted the petitioner namely Sanjay Das @ Sanju under sec. 354 IPC and sentenced him to RI for six months with a fine of Rs.500.00 with default stipulation.

(2.) The genesis of the prosecution case is rooted in the FIR lodged by the mother of the victim with the officer in charge of Bodhjungnagar police station on 29/10/2011 wherein she alleged, inter alia, that on 28/10/2011 at about 04.30 pm her 17 years' old daughter and one of her grand-daughter aged 10 years were watching T.V. in their bedroom. The accused who used to live in the adjoining house came to there and sat on the bed of her daughter. All on a sudden he touched the breast and belly of her daughter and thereby outraged her modesty. When her daughter tried to cry out for help, the accused pressed her mouth to prevent her from shouting. The accused also terrorized the grand-daughter of the informant. However, they managed to run out to the house of Smt. Rahima Khatun and Smt. Hajara Khatun in their neighbourhood and told everything to them. Accused also fled away. When the informant returned home from work in the evening, her daughter told her everything. Initially, she took up the matter with the local panchayet and pursuant to the advice of the panchayet, she reported the matter to police.

(3.) On the basis of her FIR, Bodhjungnagar PS case No.57 of 2011 under Sec. 447, 354 and 323 IPC was registered and the case was taken up for investigation.