Latest news with #WajidShaikh
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Time of India
Court allows termination of pregnancy in Pocso case
Surat: A local court on Tuesday permitted the medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) for a 23-year-old woman accused of sexually assaulting her 13-year-old tuition student. The woman was arrested on April 30, and medical tests conducted while in police custody revealed she was 20 weeks court directed the investigation officer to ensure the MTP is carried out at the Surat Municipal Institute of Medical Education and Research (SMIMER) and submit a report within a its order, the court observed: "As per the medical opinion, it is opined that if the pregnancy continues, it will cause grave injury to her mental or physical health. Thus, it appears that the explanation is satisfied in so far as the pregnancy on account of illegal relation is concerned."The court concluded that the pregnancy was a result of an illegal relationship and that the accused woman expressed her unwillingness to continue it. It added that continuation of the pregnancy could harm her mental and physical health and that termination would also be in the interest of the minor court instructed that the procedure be carried out in the presence of a team of expert doctors and ordered that the fetus be preserved for DNA analysis to aid the investigation."The court considered various arguments about how the pregnancy is risky for the life of the accused and the fetus," said Wajid Shaikh, lawyer of the DNA samples had been collected from both the accused and the victim woman was arrested under various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. She was initially booked at Punagam police station on April 25 after allegedly fleeing with her 13-year-old student. The police later apprehended her near the Gujarat-Rajasthan revealed that the woman had travelled with the boy to several cities, including Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Delhi, and Vrindavan. Police allege she engaged in physical relations with the minor at her residence and other locations during this period.
Indian Express
11-05-2025
- Indian Express
Abortion plea by woman held for ‘kidnapping' 13-yr-old boy: Surat court to hear police's response today
The Special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012) court in Surat will on Monday hear the police's response to the plea filed by a 23-year-woman, who is in jail following her arrest in a kidnapping and POCSO case involving her 13-year-old student, seeking permission to undergo an abortion. The woman was arrested on April 29 after the boy's parents filed a kidnapping case against her on April 26. The woman's lawyer, Wajid Shaikh, had on Friday submitted an application with the Special POCSO court of Judge R R Bhatt, seeking permission to abort the pregnancy under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act's section 3. The judge had notified the police station concerned, asking the officers to be present in court with case-related documents. The woman and her student went missing from their respective homes on April 25. The next day, Punagam police, following a complaint by the boy's father, registered an offence under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Act's Section 137(2), which pertains to kidnapping, against the teacher. The teacher was arrested and the boy rescued from Shamlaji, a border area between Gujarat and Rajasthan, on April 29. The duo was brought to Surat where, following a medical examination, it came to light that the woman is 20 weeks pregnant. After police remand, the accused teacher was sent to judicial custody at Surat Central Jail. Talking to The Indian Express, defence lawyer Shaikh said, 'We have applied with the court seeking abortion. Our reasons are that there is a threat to the life of the accused and the newborn during delivery.' An inspector of the police station concerned said, 'We have received the notice from the court and learnt about the application for abortion filed by the defence lawyer. In such cases, the court directs the police to get an opinion from the medical fraternity doctors. If the court directs us, we will take custody of the accused teacher from the jail and take her for an examination by a medical expert.'
Time of India
09-05-2025
- Time of India
Teacher accused in Pocso case asks court for abortion
Surat: The 23-year-old tuition teacher who allegedly ran off with her 13-year-old student on Friday moved court seeking permission to abort her pregnancy. The medical examination after her arrest found that she was 20 weeks pregnant. It is yet to be ascertained who the father of the child is, while a sample from the fetus was recently taken for DNA testing. The accused, through her lawyer, appealed to the court that various medical examinations suggest that the pregnancy and delivery could be a threat to her life. "We have approached the court for termination of pregnancy and are hopeful that, considering various factors, the court will give permission. There is a threat to the life of the child as well as the father is said to be a young boy and pregnancy through a young boy can be considered abnormal," said Wajid Shaikh, the lawyer of the accused woman. The accused teacher was arrested under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) on March 30. She was initially booked at Punagam police station after she disappeared with her 13-year-old student on April 25. She was later caught near the Gujarat-Rajasthan border. Before they were caught, the teacher and her student went to Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Delhi and Vrindavan. The investigation revealed that the woman allegedly had physical relations with the boy at her home and other places.
