ALAPPUZHA: A 75-year-old man who spent 285 days in judicial custody after being charged with sections under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act has been acquitted by the Alappuzha Pocso Court. Additional Sessions Court Judge Roy Varghese ruled that the elderly man was not guilty after a key witness retracted her earlier statement.
The court found that the accused, who had been working as a security staffer at a school in Alappuzha, was falsely implicated in a sexual abuse case by a minor girl studying at the school.
The girl had introduced the elderly man to her mother, whose husband had abandoned her. Over time, the man became acquainted with the family and began helping them. Subsequently, the girl alleged that he had sexually abused her during that period and that she had become pregnant as a result.
The police registered a case based on her statement and arrested the man, who was then remanded to judicial custody. A chargesheet was filed by Alappuzha North police, although the initial claim of pregnancy was later omitted from the document. Despite that, the court denied him bail.
During trial, the survivor, in cross-examination, admitted that the elderly man had never abused her and that she had a boyfriend who was actually responsible for impregnating her. Following the revelation, the court directed the Alappuzha North Police to carry out a fresh probe.
Based on the girl’s revised statement, the police booked her boyfriend and submitted a chargesheet in court. However, they did not withdraw the original case against the elderly man.
In a second round of examination, the girl reaffirmed her revised statement, and other witnesses were also examined. On completing the trial, the court concluded that the accused was innocent and acquitted him of all charges. The mishandling of the case by the police, particularly their failure to drop the original charges even after the truth was uncovered, resulted in the septuagenarian spending nearly ten months in jail.