The Supreme Court Thursday reiterated its disapproval of the Calcutta High Court verdict advising adolescent girls to “control sexual urges” and said that “writing such judgments is absolutely wrong”. “See the kind of findings.What kind of principles have the judges invoked! HC says POCSO section should be amended and as it is not amended, they will exercise power under Section 482.From where such concepts come, we do not know. We want to address,” Justice A S Oka presiding over a two-judge bench said. Section 482 deals with the inherent powers of the High Court. On Thursday, senior advocate Huzefa Ahmadi, appearing for West Bengal, informed the bench, also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, that the state government had filed an appeal challenging the Calcutta HC order on October 18, 2023. In its order in a case of kidnapping and sexual assault of a young girl, a division bench of Justices Chitta Ranjan Dash and Partha Sarathi Sen of the Calcutta HC had also stated it was the duty of every adolescent girl to “protect her right to integrity of her body”. Ahmadi contended that besides certain parts flagged by the SC, there were also other problematic paragraphs. Justice Oka remarked, “every paragraph is problematic. We have marked all the paragraphs.” The SC said both matters will have to be heard together and directed the Registry to list the West Bengal appeal along with the suo motu proceedings pending before it on January 12. The SC, which took suo motu cognizance, had on December 8, 2023 issued notice to the state of West Bengal and sought to know if the state intended to challenge the judgment. It added that “. the honourable judges are not expected to either express their personal views or preach.”
