If advocates are scared, judicial system will crumble: Delhi court

The court also directed that an FIR be lodged against the father of the complainant under Section 22 (1) (punishment for false complaint or false information) of the POCSO Act.

In its order, the court noted that it is essential advocates function fearlessly for the proper functioning of the judicial system. “However, when the advocate is falsely implicated in a serious case like POCSO, it deters the advocate from giving their professional services to the victims fearing false accusation from the other side,” it said.

“If the advocates are unable to give their professional services without any fear, it would lead to the crumbling down of the judicial system,” it added.

The complaint in the case of sexual assault was lodged in September 2023 by the complainant against her uncle and aunt, their daughter, and their relative.

Police, however, filed a closure report in this case based on pending civil cases against the parties. It also relied on various audio and video recordings between the complainant and her mother and sister, which allegedly showed that a false case was lodged under the POSCO Act “at the instance of the complainant’s father”.

“Therefore, it is clear from the records (chats between the complainant and her mother and sister) that the complainant filed a false complaint against all the respondents at the instance of her father,” the court said.

“The complainant went to the extent of dragging her maternal uncle, grandmother, aunt, and advocate in this case. It is also clear from the record that the sole purpose of filing the false complaint before the police was ongoing disputes between both sides,” it added.

“… Sometimes… children are exploited by their parents and are forced to file false complaints for ulterior motives. The provisions of POCSO are misused by some litigants out of personal vendetta which causes a serious threat to society in general and to the entire justice delivery system, in particular,” ASJ Aggarwal noted in the order.

Additional Public Prosecutor K V Arun, who represented the State in this matter, told The Indian Express, “This will be among the first cases in India where an FIR is registered under Section 22 of the POCSO Act against the father of the complainant/victim.”