The Kerala High Court has sustained the conviction and 20-year rigorous imprisonment of a 61-year-old tea vendor for sexually assaulting a nine-year-old boy repeatedly over more than three years.
In a July 20 ruling, Justice A Badharudeen affirmed the verdict and a Rs 25,000 fine previously handed down by a special court under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. Dismissing the appeal, the court stated that no reduction in the sentence was legally permissible, as 20 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 6 of the statute constitutes both the minimum and maximum penalty prescribed for the offense.
Details of Allegations
According to the prosecution, the offenses occurred between June 1, 2020, and August 5, 2023. The accused, who is a relative of the child’s father, lured the boy to his home in the absence of his wife by offering leftover tea intended for the victim’s family. Once inside, the man subjected the child to sexual assault in the form of oral sex, leading to charges of unnatural offenses under the Indian Penal Code along with POCSO violations.
Arguments and Court Findings
Defense counsel Advocates A V Indira and Sreedevi S challenged the conviction, arguing that the prosecution failed to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. They contended that the child’s account was unreliable because the repeated assault was reported only on August 8, 2023. The defense also pointed out that medical examinations revealed no physical trauma on the survivor and cited testimony from the child’s grandmother regarding a prior dispute between the accused and the victim’s mother as evidence of a false case.
Rejecting the defense arguments, the High Court found the survivor’s testimony credible, accepting his statement that fear of his mother had prevented earlier disclosure. Justice Badharudeen noted that the absence of physical injury did not discredit the prosecution’s case, as the specific acts committed carried a remote likelihood of causing visible physical injury. Additionally, the court cited a medical potency evaluation showing no evidence that the accused was incapable of performing sexual acts.
Public Prosecutor M A Shihab and advocate K Arvind, representing the boy, submitted that the child’s testimony was backed by family statements. The boy’s mother testified that her older son had previously stopped retrieving tea from the vendor due to inappropriate conduct.
