“Though the accused are excluded to be the biological father of the baby of the victim, it cannot be inferred automatically they did not sexually assault her. The testimony of the victim is consistent and corroborates the prosecution’s case. Therefore, testimony of the victim is sufficient to prove the charge of penetrative sexual assault against the accused,” said special judge Seema C Jadhav.
Tests showed that the minor survivor’s mental age was that of an 11-year-old. Once her pregnancy came to light, she revealed that a shop worker she had befriended while on errands and the 39-year-old husband of her mother’s friend had repeatedly sexually assaulted her.
Minor’s aunt got suspicious seeing enlarged tummy
Based on a 16-year-old girl’s testimony, a special Posco court has convicted two persons of raping the minor who has the mental age of an 11 year old. After her mother died, the minor survivor had moved in with her mother’s friend to learn beautician skills. In 2021, her paternal aunt saw her with an enlarged belly and got suspicious. The girl initially said she had eaten too much, but the aunt insisted on a pregnancy test, which was positive. She then revealed the shop worker had sexually assaulted her.
After an FIR against the 34-year-old and she was moved to a children’s home, she talked about the repeated sexual assault by the other accused. “The accused are mature enough. Such heinous acts by the accused have cast a life-long psychological, emotional impact on victim. The assault left a scar for life,” said the judge in the ruling last week. The judge fined the accused Rs 25,000 each. The amount, when deposited, will be paid to the minor as compensation.
“The incident has caused adverse impact on the mind of the victim. No compensation can be adequate or of any respite for the victim. But monetary compensation will at least provide some solace…,” the judge said. The minor, her paternal aunt, father, cops and doctors were among the 11 who deposed during the trial. The victim was referred for mental health assessment. Doctors said her IQ was suggestive of “borderline intellectual functioning with mental age of 11 years and 5 months”.
(The victim’s identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court’s directives on cases related to sexual assault)
