The Supreme Court of India has acquitted a man convicted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, exercising its extraordinary constitutional powers because the victim subsequently married him upon reaching adulthood.
A division bench comprising Justices J K Maheshwari and Atul S Chandurkar set aside the Madras High Court’s prior refusal to overturn the conviction. The bench declared that the couple is now free to live peacefully in society as spouses. To achieve this, the apex court invoked Article 142 of the Constitution, which grants the Supreme Court the authority to issue any order necessary to deliver complete justice in any pending case.
Constitutional Power Applied
The bench clarified that the acquittal was granted strictly due to the unique circumstances of this case and will not serve as a legal precedent for other matters. The court chose to set aside the conviction and sentence under Section 5(1) of the POCSO Act without evaluating the broader merits of the case. Additionally, because the man’s substantive jail sentence had already been suspended by the high court on June 3, 2019, the bench noted that he is not required to surrender to custody.
Case Background
The legal dispute began when the man and the woman fell in love while she was studying in the 12th grade. When the man initially refused to marry her, she filed a criminal complaint against him. This complaint led to his prosecution and subsequent conviction, resulting in a 10-year prison sentence for engaging in physical relations with a minor.
Reconciliation and Appeal
Following the trial, the woman married another man. However, her new husband abandoned her within days of discovering her previous relationship. While the convicted man was subsequently out on bail, the two reconciled, married, and established a household together.
Seeking to clear her husband’s record, the woman petitioned the Madras High Court to set aside his conviction. After the high court rejected her petition, the couple appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court, resulting in the final acquittal.
