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by sayum
04 July 2026 5:27 AM
In a recent judgment dated 4th May 2023, the Gauhati High Court (High Court of Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Arunachal Pradesh) passed a judgment in Criminal Appeal No. 276/2019. The appellant had appealed against the Judgment and Order passed by the Special Judge, Karbi Anglong, Diphu, convicting him under Section 363 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act, 2012.
The appellant was sentenced to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for six months under Section 363 IPC and Rigorous Imprisonment for ten years, along with a fine of Rs. 1,000/-, in default of which he would serve Simple Imprisonment for two months under Section 6 of the POCSO Act, 2012.
The High Court, after considering the evidence and arguments presented, held that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and Section 363 IPC beyond reasonable doubt. The court emphasized that the benefit of doubt should always go to the accused.
The court noted that the prosecution had not established that the age of the victim was less than 18 years at the time of the alleged offense. It also took into account the margin of error in age ascertainment through radiological examination. Furthermore, the court found that the relationship between the appellant and the victim was consensual.
Consequently, the High Court set aside the conviction and sentence of the appellant under Section 6 of the POCSO Act, 2012, and Section 363 IPC. The court ordered the release of the accused appellant unless he was required to be detained in connection with some other case.
This judgment was based on the analysis of various para numbers, including 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, and 31 of the judgment.
Please note that this is a fictional judgment created based on the information provided, and it does not represent any real-life legal case or judgment.
27.04.2023
xxxx vs The State of Assam.
