HYDERABAD: The FSL report yielded negative results. No biological material was detected. Yet, a local court recently sentenced a 30-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl — the daughter of his friend.
Observing that no Indian parents would fabricate such allegations to tarnish their daughter’s character, the court relied on the survivor’s consistent testimony and medical evidence to deliver the judgment.
According to the prosecution, on February 10, 2021, the girl, then a Class 9 student, was alone at home as her parents had gone to work. She left the house in the afternoon, informing neighbours that she was going to a nearby shop, but did not return. Her parents searched for her and later lodged a missing persons complaint with Meerpet police.
Three days later, the girl reached her aunt’s house in Manchal, Rangareddy district, where she disclosed the incident. The police then altered the sections of the case, conducted an investigation and filed a chargesheet.
Stalking & kidnapping
The girl told the court that the 30-year-old married man had been stalking her. On February 10, as she walked along the road, he met her, again expressed his willingness to marry her, and forcibly took her to Kothapet in an auto-rickshaw, claiming he wanted to introduce her to his paternal uncle. That night, the girl slept alongside the convict’s wife and children.
The next day, February 11, he took her to his friend’s room in Suryapet, where he forcibly had sexual intercourse with her. Upon learning that a police case had been registered over her disappearance, the 30-year-old brought her back to the city that same day.
The defence argued that the case was false, citing the FSL report, which did not detect any biological material. However, the court observed that samples were collected three days after the incident, and such delays can lead to negative findings as biological evidence has limited survivability. It also noted that the absence of such material does not rule out sexual assault.
The medical officer testified that the examination revealed injuries consistent with recent trauma and penetration, including hymenal tears and abrasions, supporting the prosecution’s case.
The court reiterated that the testimony of a survivor, if credible and consistent, is sufficient to establish the offence and does not require independent corroboration. In this case, it found the survivor’s account to be reliable and supported by medical evidence.
The defence counsel alleged that a grudge against the accused was the reason for filing a false case, but he did not prove it in court. The court noted that generally, no parents in India would willingly tarnish their daughter’s character by fabricating allegations, and if the convict had not committed any offence and there was truly no grudge, there would be no reason for the girl to falsely implicate him.
“A woman would not tarnish her own reputation without a valid reason or enmity against the accused,” the court observed.
After the trial, the court sentenced the 30-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and also directed the District Legal Services Authority to provide `4 lakh as compensation to the survivor.