A city court this week found fault with the pattern of punishment laid down in the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO),2012,observing that it prescribed the same sentence for varying degrees of assault. POCSO lays down a minimum quantum of punishment for assaults. However,according to Additional Sessions Judge Pawan Kumar Jain,the scope of sexual assault defined in the act was broad. To my mind,same minimum sentence for touching of more sensitive parts.. and for touching of non-sensitive parts of body is not in the interest of justice, the judge observed while awarding a five-year term to a man for assaulting a five-year-old girl. An FIR was registered in March,after the girl complained to her mother that a man,who she called uncle,had taken her behind a gurdwara and sexually assaulted her. In the police complaint,it was alleged that the man had disrobed the child,touched her genitalia besides biting her cheek. In the court,the complaint was narrowed down to bite marks on the cheek. After the man was convicted,his lawyer argued for a lesser sentence,saying that the possibility that the convict had kissed the victim due to love and affection cannot be ruled out. However,the judge observed,Under Section 10 of POCSO Act,court has no option except to award minimum sentence of imprisonment of five years. age of the convict and the fact that he is first-time offender are mitigating factors in favour of the convict,but in view of provisions of Section 10 of the Act,this court is unable to give due weightage to the said mitigating factors.
