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The Hindu
19-05-2025
- The Hindu
‘Exorcist', schoolgirl's father escape POCSO Act conviction in Madras High Court due to doubts over her age
Trigger warning: the following article has references to child sexual abuse, sexual assault, and rape. Reader discretion advised. An 'exorcist' and the father of a schoolgirl have escaped punishment under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act of 2012 because of the prosecution's failure to prove she was only 16 years old when the duo subjected her to sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault, respectively. A Madras High Court Division Bench of Justices A.D. Jagadish Chandira and K. Rajasekar held that a certificate issued by the school headmistress was insufficient to prove the age of the victim. A radiologist who conducted the ossification test was not examined, and the test report was not marked as evidence before the trial court, they said. To get today's top stories from the State in your inbox, subscribe to our Tamil Nadu Today newsletter The judges, therefore, set aside the conviction of the girl's father Gunasekaran and the 'exorcist' Sivakumar for the offences under Sections 7 (sexual assault) and 5 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the POCSO Act, which the trial court had invoked to impose five years of rigorous imprisonment and life sentence, respectively. Charged under rape Nevertheless, since Additional Public Prosecutor A. Thiruvadi Kumar had succeeded in proving the other facts of the case before the High Court, the Division Bench convicted the girl's father under Section 354 (outraging a woman's modesty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentenced him to three years of simple imprisonment. The Bench also found the 'exorcist' guilty under Section 376(1) (rape) of the IPC and sentenced him to rigorous imprisonment for 10 years. It also reduced the fine amount of ₹5 lakh imposed on him by the trial court under the POCSO Act to ₹25,000 for the IPC offence, with a default sentence of one year of simple imprisonment. The judges further ordered that the compensation of ₹7 lakh ordered to be paid to the victim by the trial court by invoking the provisions of the POCSO Act, should instead be paid from the Tamil Nadu Victim Compensation Scheme for Women Victims/Survivors of Sexual Assault/Other Crimes 2018. What is the case about? According to the Inspector of an All Women Police Station in Ramanathapuram, the girl was first molested by her father in 2018 when she was 14 years old and studying in Class VII. He later moved abroad for a job. Subsequent to his return to the country in 2020 due to COVID-19, the convict continued to sexually assault his daughter and threatened her with dire consequences if it was revealed to her mother. Meanwhile, the mother, concerned about her daughter's changes in behaviour, took her to the 'exorcist' for remedy. The exorcist, however, further subjected the girl to penetrative sexual assault in 2021. The girl then opened up to her mother, who immediately called the child helpline 1098, leading to the registration of the POCSO Act case against the father and the 'exorcist'. Accused found guilty Though the convicts raised multiple grounds to attack the prosecution case on merits and attempted to get acquitted from all charges, the judges rejected those grounds and held that the evidence adduced by the prosecution was sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused beyond all reasonable doubt. The Division Bench also observed there was nothing wrong on the part of the trial court in having conducted a joint trial against the two convicts though the charges levelled against them were of different periods, spanning between 2018 and 2021, and the alleged offences too had occurred at different places. 'The accused have understood the charges for which they have been facing the trial and they were not able to establish prejudice, if any, caused to them... This court finds that no prejudice had been caused to them due to their joint trial and there is no miscarriage of justice against the accused,' the Bench concluded. The judgment was reserved at the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court but delivered at its principal seat in Chennai.
The Hindu
19-05-2025
- The Hindu
‘Exorcist' and schoolgirl's father escape POCSO Act conviction due to doubts over her age
Trigger warning: the following article has references to child sexual abuse, sexual assault, and rape. Reader discretion advised. An 'exorcist' and the father of a schoolgirl have escaped punishment under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act of 2012 because of the prosecution's failure to prove she was only 16 years old when the duo subjected her to sexual assault and aggravated penetrative sexual assault, respectively. A Division Bench of Justices A.D. Jagadish Chandira and K. Rajasekar held that a certificate issued by the school headmistress was insufficient to prove the age of the victim. A radiologist who conducted the ossification test was not examined, and the test report was not marked as evidence before the trial court, they said. The judges, therefore, set aside the conviction of the girl's father Gunasekaran and the 'exorcist' Sivakumar for the offences under Sections 7 (sexual assault) and 5 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the POCSO Act, which the trial court had invoked to impose five years of rigorous imprisonment and life sentence, respectively. Charged under rape Nevertheless, since Additional Public Prosecutor A. Thiruvadi Kumar had succeeded in proving the other facts of the case before the High Court, the Division Bench convicted the girl's father under Section 354 (outraging a woman's modesty) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sentenced him to three years of simple imprisonment. The Bench also found the 'exorcist' guilty under Section 376(1) (rape) of the IPC and sentenced him to rigorous imprisonment for 10 years. It also reduced the fine amount of ₹5 lakh imposed on him by the trial court under the POCSO Act to ₹25,000 for the IPC offence, with a default sentence of one year of simple imprisonment. The judges further ordered that the compensation of ₹7 lakh ordered to be paid to the victim by the trial court by invoking the provisions of the POCSO Act, should instead be paid from the Tamil Nadu Victim Compensation Scheme for Women Victims/Survivors of Sexual Assault/Other Crimes 2018. What is the case about? According to the Inspector of an All Women Police Station in Ramanathapuram, the girl was first molested by her father in 2018 when she was 14 years old and studying in Class VII. He later moved abroad for a job. Subsequent to his return to the country in 2020 due to COVID-19, the convict continued to sexually assault his daughter and threatened her with dire consequences if it was revealed to her mother. Meanwhile, the mother, concerned about her daughter's changes in behaviour, took her to the 'exorcist' for remedy. The exorcist, however, further subjected the girl to penetrative sexual assault in 2021. The girl then opened up to her mother, who immediately called the child helpline 1098, leading to the registration of the POCSO Act case against the father and the 'exorcist'. Accused found guilty Though the convicts raised multiple grounds to attack the prosecution case on merits and attempted to get acquitted from all charges, the judges rejected those grounds and held that the evidence adduced by the prosecution was sufficient to prove the guilt of the accused beyond all reasonable doubt. The Division Bench also observed there was nothing wrong on the part of the trial court in having conducted a joint trial against the two convicts though the charges levelled against them were of different periods, spanning between 2018 and 2021, and the alleged offences too had occurred at different places. 'The accused have understood the charges for which they have been facing the trial and they were not able to establish prejudice, if any, caused to them... This court finds that no prejudice had been caused to them due to their joint trial and there is no miscarriage of justice against the accused,' the Bench concluded. The judgment was reserved at the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court but delivered at its principal seat in Chennai.
New Indian Express
02-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Hold periodic reviews to ensure compliance with court orders: Madras HC to police
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered the police department to conduct periodic reviews of court orders in criminal cases and comply with its directions within a stipulated time. The order was issued by Justice AD Jagadish Chandira while disposing of a contempt of court petition filed by J Manohar Das against the Koyambedu police for wilful disobedience of the court's order for action on a complaint he had lodged. 'All police commissioners and SPs shall conduct monthly reviews of court directions for time-bound action and ensure digital tracking of compliance,' the judge said in the order passed on Wednesday. The court also directed the authorities to complete the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) 2.0 project within four months and instructed the home department and the DGP to implement the SOP issued by the court on December 8, 2024.
The Hindu
01-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Implement CCTNS 2.0 within four months, Madras High Court directs Tamil Nadu Police Department
Observing that the Tamil Nadu Police Department lags behind in leveraging information technology, the Madras High Court has directed it to ensure that the entire process of a criminal case, right from the stage of receipt of a complaint till the delivery of judgment, is digitised and updated online on a real-time basis. Justice A.D. Jagadish Chandira took serious note of the long delay in implementing the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) 2.0 project by the State Police Department and ordered that it should be put in place within four months, failing which the department must come up with a valid justification. The judge pointed out that the Supreme Court's e-committee had initiated a national-level Inter-operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) platform, which interconnects the CCTNS portal used by State police departments, the Case Information System (CIS) portal used by courts, and the e-prison, e-forensic and e-prosecution portals. The aim of ICJS was to ensure that the High Courts as well as trial courts could easily access First Information Reports (FIRs), case diaries, chargesheets, and such other documents uploaded in PDF format. The National Crime Records Bureau had been asked to work along with National Informatics Centre to implement ICJS. Though the system, conceived by the Supreme Court and implemented by the Union Home Ministry, had been put to use in several States across the country, it was yet to be implemented in Tamil Nadu due to incompatibility of the existing CCTNS portal of the State Police Department with the national ICJS platform. On being told that the compatibility issues could be resolved after the implementation CCTNS 2.0, which remains in the pipeline for quite a few years now, the judge ordered that the new software must be put to use within four months so that the problems faced by citizens could be reduced to a great extent. He pointed out that courts were flooded with petitions seeking directions to the police to either register FIRs or file chargesheets. Even after the courts issue such directions, the police do not comply with the orders within the fixed time frame, forcing the litigants to file contempt of court petitions. In response, the police, invariably, seek excuse for non-compliance of the court orders by citing frequent transfer of investigating officers. In some instances, though the police file the chargesheets on time, the information is not updated on the Police Department website, thereby keeping the litigants in the dark. Stating that the lack of inclination to keep pace with technology could not be condoned in a digital era gripped by artificial intelligence, Justice Chandira said, it was high time that the Tamil Nadu Police Department use technology to the maximum for the collective benefit of the criminal justice system. The orders were passed on a contempt of court petition filed by a complainant against Greater Chennai city police personnel for taking over two years to take effective action in a cheating case. The judge directed the High Court Registry to list the plea again after four months to ascertain the status of CCTNS 2.0.
The Hindu
22-04-2025
- The Hindu
Unauthorised subletting of properties in T.N. will be registered as criminal cases: DGP at Madras High Court
The Tamil Nadu Director General of Police/Head of Police Force Shankar Jiwal (DGP/HoPF) has informed the Madras High Court of having instructed all police officials across the State to register First Information Reports (FIRs) if tenants end up subletting immovable properties without the consent of landlords. Justice A.D. Jagadish Chandira was informed by Government Advocate (criminal side) S. Santhosh of a circular issued by the DGP/HoPF instructing all police personnel in the State to not brush aside subletting complaints from landlords as civil disputes and instead register FIRs under appropriate provisions of law. The submission was made after the judge took cognisance of a novel modus operandi being adopted by many criminal elements who take immovable properties on lease by pretending to be genuine tenants and then sub lease them for much higher amounts to third parties without the consent of the landlords. The judge also pointed out that when the landlords come to know of the illegality, the culprits cleverly give a civil colour to the criminal offence and escape from the clutches of law, after swindling all the money, by leaving the landlords and the sub tenants to fight out before the civil courts for years together. After calling for statistics, Justice Chandira found that 40 such cases involving 67 victims were pending before Greater Chennai City Police, 342 victims had been affected in Tambaram Commissionerate, 20 victims in Avadi Commisssionerate and 1,020 victims in the cases pending before the Economic Offences Wing. In all, the amount cheated was nearly ₹65 crore and some of those cases were pending since 2013. Therefore, the judge asked State Public Prosecutor Hasan Mohamed Jinnah to take the issue to the notice of the DGP/HoPF and find a solution to the problem by preventing gullible landlords from getting cheated. Accordingly, he was informed on Tuesday (April 22, 2025) that apart from the circular, the DGP had also taken steps to create video messages to create awareness among the general public and let them circulate on social media. After watching the video, Justice Chandira requested the broadcast media to circulate it widely on their television channels and also insisted on circulating it on the social media in order to deter people from falling prey to fraudulent people in the future. He also recorded the court's appreciation for Mr. Jinnah, Mr. Jiwal and Mr. Shankar.
