BHURA @ RASHID Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner-juvenile in conflict with law has challenged the judgment of conviction and sentence passed by the Courts below.

(2.) The Juvenile Justice Board (in short, the Board) vide its judgment dated 11.01.2017 held him guilty under Sections 366-A, 376-D read with Section 34 IPC and under Sections 3 and 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act, 2012 (for brevity, POCSO) and ordered his stay in the Special Home for three years. The Appellate Court below modified the sentence and held him guilty under Sections 366 and 376 IPC, while his conviction under Section 4 of the POCSO Act was upheld. The sentence imposed by the Board was maintained and the appeal was dismissed.

(3.) The prosecution case, in brief, was that on 11.12.2014 prosecutrix (PW9) approached the police and in the presence of District Protection Counsel made a statement that on 05.12.2014 she along with her brother had gone to the fields to ease in the evening at about 7:00 p.m. The appellant along with his brother-in-law came there. On gun point, the appellant forcibly made her to sit on the motor cycle. She was gagged and taken to the jungle in village Sikwara, Rafiq the third accused was also present. She was raped by them turn by turn. Rafiq went away while appellant and his brother-in-law took her to a house in village Sikwara. Asubi, mother of appellant offered to get her married to the petitioner. She was kept there for two days. On the third day, Sarju, mother of the appellant, Wahid, Hakku and Hasi took her and left at the outskirts of her village and threatened her not to report the incident. The prosecutrix returned home and narrated the incident to her parents.