SANTOSH TANTI Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The instant criminal appeal from Jail under Sec. 383, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ['the CrPC' or 'the Code', for short] is preferred to assail a Judgment and Order dtd. 1/2/2022 passed by the Court of learned Special Judge, POCSO, Golaghat ['the Special Court', for short] in Special [POCSO] Case no. 32/2020. By the Judgment and Order dtd. 1/2/2022, the accused-appellant has been convicted for the offence under Sec. 6, Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences [POCSO] Act, 2012. For finding him guilty of the charge of committing the offence of aggravated penetrative sexual assault on his own minor daughter [hereinafter referred to as 'the victim', at places, for easy reference], the accused-appellant has been sentenced to undergo imprisonment for a period of twenty years and to pay a fine of Rs.5,000.00, in default of payment of fine, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of another three months. It has been ordered that the period undergone by the accused-appellant in custody shall be set-off from the total period of sentence imposed against him.

(2.) The investigation was set into motion on institution of a First Information Report [FIR] by the mother [P.W.8] of the victim [P.W.7] before the Officer In-Charge, Bogijan Police Station on 6/7/2020. In the FIR, the informant [P.W.8] reported that she being a permanent employee of Bogijan Tea Estate, used to go for her works in the morning and return home in the afternoon. The informant [P.W.8] had inter alia stated that at around 03-00 p.m. on 6/7/2020, she was giving bath to her daughter, aged 9 years. At that time, the daughter informed her that she was feeling pain in her vagina and blood was coming out of it. On being so informed, the informant [P.W.8] examined the vagina of her daughter and noticed that blood was coming out of it and it had become red and swollen. On making query, the daughter informed her that her father had committed sexual assault on her in the evening hours on 4/7/2020.

(3.) On receipt of the FIR [Ext.-2] at 05-10 p.m. on 6/7/2020, the Officer In-Charge, Bogijan Police Station registered the same as Bogijan Police Station Case no. 31/2020 [corresponding G.R. Case no. 720/2020] for the offences under Sec. 376AB, Indian Penal Code [IPC] r/w Sec. 4, POCSO Act, 2012 and took up the investigation of the case as its Investigating Officer [I.O.]. Prior to lodging of the FIR [Ext.-2] by the informant [P.W.8], the Officer In-Charge, Bogijan Police Station received a telephonic information from a resident of Natun Line, Bogijan Tea Estate P.W.2 to the effect that the local people of Natun Line, Bogijan Tea Estate had kept the accused tied up on an allegation that he had allegedly sexually assaulted his minor daughter and a lot of people had gathered at the place. On receipt of the said information, the I.O. [P.W.9] registered the information as Bogijan Police Station General Diary Entry no. 94 dtd. 6/7/2020 [Ext.-1-1] at 04-10 p.m. and proceeded to the spot with support staff.