Supreme Court spares sentence in POCSO case, citing victim’s present life, systemic failures
New Delhi: In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court decided not to impose a sentence on a 24-year-old man convicted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, invoking its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution.
The man was found guilty of engaging in a sexual relationship with a minor. He later married the girl after she became an adult and the two now live together with their child.
A bench comprising Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan relied heavily on the findings of an expert committee, including a clinical psychologist and a social scientist that assessed the present condition and consent of the now-adult woman. The Court observed, "The society judged her, the legal system failed her, and her own family abandoned her.”
In a rare admission, the Court said, "Though the incident is seen as crime in law, the victim did not accept it as one. It was not the legal crime that caused trauma to her, but rather the consequences that followed the police, the legal system, and a constant battle to save the accused from punishment."
The case reached the Supreme Court following a controversial 2023 judgment by the Calcutta High Court that acquitted the man. The Supreme Court quashed that acquittal on August 20, 2024, reinstating the conviction but withholding sentencing pending a deeper understanding of the victim’s current life.
The Court directed the West Bengal government to form a panel, including experts from institutions such as NIMHANS or TISS, to gather facts with sensitivity and inform the victim of her welfare entitlements. The findings, submitted in a sealed envelope, revealed her emotional dependence on the convict and her possessiveness about their small family unit.
On April 3 this year, the Court found that she needed financial support and advised vocational training and part-time employment following her Class 10 board exams. "She did not have the opportunity to make an informed choice earlier. The system failed her at multiple levels," the judgment added.
While upholding the conviction, the apex court concluded that justice in this case lay not in imprisonment but in preserving the victim’s current family stability and supporting her reintegration into society.
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South African police arrest suspect in mass shooting that killed 12, including 3 children
Johannesburg (AP): A 32-year-old suspect has been arrested in connection with a mass shooting which claimed the lives of 12 people including three children at an unlicensed pub earlier this month, South African police said on Monday.
The man is suspected of being one of the three people who opened fire on patrons in a pub at Saulsville township, west of South Africa's capital Pretoria, killing 12 people including three children aged 3, 12 and 16.
At least 13 people were also injured during the attack, whose motive remains unknown.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested on Sunday while traveling to Botlokwa in Limpopo province, more than 340 km from where the mass shooting took place on Dec 6.
An unlicensed firearm believed to have been used during the attack was recovered from the suspect's vehicle.
“The 32-year-old suspect was intercepted by Limpopo Tracking Team on the R101 Road in Westenburg precinct. During the arrest, the team recovered an unlicensed firearm, a hand gun, believed to have been used in the commission of the multiple murders. The firearm will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory for ballistic analysis,” police said in statement.
The suspect was arrested on the same day that another mass shooting at a pub took place in the Bekkersdal township, west of Johannesburg, in which nine people were killed and 10 wounded when unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons.
Police have since launched a search for the suspects.
South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and recorded more than 26,000 homicides in 2024 — an average of more than 70 a day. Firearms are by far the leading cause of death in homicides.
The country of 62 million people has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but many killings are committed with illegal guns, according to authorities.
According to police, mass shootings at unlicensed bars are becoming a serious problem. Police shut down more than 11,000 illegal taverns between April and September this year and arrested more than 18,000 people for involvement in illegal liquor sales.
