Journalism of Courage
‘Beta’: Judge pens emotional note to POCSO survivor; ‘encouraging’ says Delhi High Court
Trial court judge Rajani Ranga had recently penned an emotional letter to the survivor in her May 20 judgment in which the accused was convicted for sexual assault under the POCSO Act.
The court directed the secretary of the District Legal Services Authority to print the message and hand it over to the survivor or her family members within two weeks. (AI-generated image)
Three years after she was sexually assaulted at the age of seven, the survivor in a POCSO case, now aged 10, is set to receive an emotional letter penned for her by the trial judge who convicted the accused in the case. Calling it a “message of encouragement”, the Delhi High Court has directed that the letter be handed over to the child or her family members, along with the compensation awarded to her.
Justices Pratibha M Singh and Dinesh Bhatt were hearing a convict’s appeal against his conviction and seeking suspension of his sentence.
“The incident in this case dates back to July 23, 2023, when the survivor is stated to have been 7 years of age, and the survivor must now be 10 years of age. The trial court’s message for her is a message of encouragement. Let the Secretary, DLSA (District Legal Services Authority), print this message, which is extracted above and hand over the same to the survivor or her family members, along with the compensation, within a period of two weeks from this order,” the September 29 order read.
Justice Pratibha M Singh and Justice Dinesh Bhatt refused to suspend the sentence of the convict.
“Beta, this Court heard you,” the message began, adding, “Today, this Court has ordered that the man you called ‘uncle’ will never walk free again.”
The letter
While lamenting that the court cannot give back her childhood, the letter said, “You are the bravest little girl this Court has ever seen. You came to Court, you pointed at the man who hurt you, and you told the truth…Now, beta, live your life. Go to school, make friends. Laugh. Play Dream. This Court will always remember your courage.”
The trial court judge’s message to the child survivor.
The letter was penned by trial court judge Rajani Ranga in her May 20 judgment, by which the accused in the case was convicted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The man was found guilty of committing aggravated penetrative sexual assault on the survivor and of criminal intimidation.
Further, on July 11 the trial court punished the man with “rigorous imprisonment for life” along with a fine of Rs 1 lakh. The trial court also awarded a final compensation of Rs 10.5 lakh to the child and her family.
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On the question of suspension of sentence, the high court said that “considering the evidence in this matter, including the forensic evidence, at this stage, the court is not inclined to suspend the sentence.”
The court called for the documents pertaining to the prisoner’s time behind bars and posted the next hearing for January 20, 2027. The court also ordered the convict file an affidavit of past criminal antecedents.
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