Delhi High Court has granted bail to a man accused in gang-rape case of a mentally challenged minor girl and said that the trial court has examined the key witness. The girl was threatened to remain silent about the horrific incident.
While granting the bail, the High Court bench has directed the accused Nitin, not to influence any witnesses related to the case or tamper with the evidence directly or indirectly.
Justice Suresh Kumar Kait stated, “It is not in dispute that the victim and her mother have already been examined on oath. Thus, material witnesses have been examined. However, in view of the submission made by counsel for the parties and the fact that the petitioner (accused) is in judicial custody since May 16, 2017, therefore, without commenting on the merits of the case, I am of the view that petitioner deserves bail.”
The court has directed to release the accused on bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 25,000 and a surety of the like amount. Nitin has been in jail for the last three years.
The prosecution told that the victim alleged that Nitin and the other accused, Deepu took her to the roof and made sexual relations coercively. However, another juvenile accused fled from the spot after observing victim’s condition. The 17-year old victim alleged that she was raped on several occasions by the accused.
The girl informed her mother on May 13, 2017 and then she registered an FIR against the accused. The complaint was lodged in Hari Nagar Police station alleged of the offences of criminal intimidation and gang rape under the relevant sections of IPC. The FIR also includes charges of aggravated penetrative sexual assault under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
As per the prosecutor, trial court has acquired the mental assessment report of the victim from the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS). This mental assessment report found her mental age to be of 8 years while her current age is 17 years.
He further added that the prosecution’s case rested solely on the girl’s false testimony as the evidence showed that the prosecutrix and the witness kept changing their version and taking a contradictory stand in their evidence and the theory propounded on the basis thereof, leave scope for multiple other conclusions. Appearing for the accused, advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, further added that no mental impairment can be found in the school records and documents.
