CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has quashed the final report (chargesheet) filed in a Pocso case against a lawyer and her partner, charged with sexually assaulting her 13-year-old son, after finding out that the investigation had not touched upon the bribery charges against a Child Welfare Committee (CWC) member who allegedly influenced the probe at the instance of the woman’s estranged husband (the boy’s father).
“This court is of the view that the final report is defective in the sense that the matter has not been investigated holistically,” Justice G Jayachandran said in a recent order. The judge noted that the police probe did not take into account the report of the inquiry conducted by the district collector, that proved CWC member Selvi Baskar, an acquaintance of the lawyer’s estranged husband, had reportedly been paid Rs 1.10 lakh for influencing the investigation.
Disposing of two petitions, one filed by the lawyer seeking the quashing of the final report and the other by her estranged husband seeking a speedy trial, the court directed Tambaram police commissioner to appoint another investigating officer to file a fresh final report within four months.
The woman’s petition stated that the Pocso case was registered against her and one Arun Pandian in 2022 based on a plaint filed by her son, and claimed that he was influenced to do so by his father. She further alleged that he also bribed the CWC member, which was proved in an inquiry held by Chennai and Chengalpattu collectors.