Man gets 20 yrs jail for raping daughter, mother found guilty of not reporting it
The court found the mother guilty of the charge of non-reporting of the offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act (POCSO).
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It noted that the mother may have been in fear of the accused and hence did not report the case to the police. (Representational photo A special court on Monday sentenced a man to 20 years in jail for raping a minor, while convicting the victim’s mother for not reporting the offence. The couple were arrested in 2019 after the 13-year-old girl informed a neighbour about the repeated sexual assault by her father.
The victim said in her deposition that her father had repeatedly committed sexual assault on her between 2017 to 2019 in their native place in Bihar as well as in Mumbai. She said that on one occasion when her mother woke up during the sexual assault, her father had stopped. However, when her mother found out, she told the girl to not disclose it to anyone.
While the mother was booked for abetment of the offence, the court acquitted her on the charge stating that she had not aided, instigated or conspired with the accused to commit the offence.
The court, however, found her guilty of the charge of non-reporting of the offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act (POCSO). It noted that the mother may have been in fear of the accused and hence did not report the case to the police.
“At a particular time, a person may be under fear, but cannot be said to be continuously under fear for a long time,” the court said. The maximum punishment under the offence is six months. The woman has been behind bars since 2019 and the court directed her to be released immediately since she has spent four years in jail already.
While the couple had claimed that they were falsely implicated as their daughter had a relationship with another person and they objected to it, the court said that there was no proof of such brought before it. The court also said that there was no reason why the girl would falsely implicate her parents. The court relied on the testimony of the victim, the neighbour whom she informed about the incident, and medical officers.
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