CHENNAI: Upholding the judgment of a local court in Coimbatore handing a prison term to a man in a child sexual assault case, the Madras High Court has observed that such convictions can be made solely relying upon the statement of the child.
Justice P Velmurugan said, “In cases of this nature, we cannot expect any eyewitness or independent witness. The culprit will take a chance on seeing the child being alone and commit the offence by trying to exploit the innocence of the child.”
“It is a settled proposition of law that when the evidence of the prosecutrix is cogent, consistent and trustworthy and inspires confidence of the court, the conviction can be recorded solely based on the evidence of the victim unless there is a reason to discard or disbelieve the evidence of the sole witness,” he affirmed.
The order was issued on an appeal filed by a Pollachi driver, K Ruban, who challenged the prison term given to him on two counts of charges by a special court under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in a child sexual assault case.
The appellant’s contention was that there were contradictions in the case of the prosecution and there was no independent witness to corroborate the alleged occurrence.
He also claimed that he was away from the place of occurrence on the said dates of the incident as he ferried passengers on his transport vehicle to Valparai then to Palani.
The judge said that the defence had failed to substantiate the alibi with concrete documentary evidence and the contention of the absence of independent witness cannot be accepted because the victim’s statement is enough.
He noted that the 11-year-old girl had clearly spoken about the incident, and the manner in which the offence was committed by the appellant, which is cogent, consistent and trustworthy and this court does not find any reason to disbelieve or discard her statement.
“In the absence of any compelling circumstances to disbelieve the evidence of the victim, this court finds that her evidence inspires its confidence,” the judge said.
The special court for POCSO cases in Coimbatore punished Ruban with seven years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5000 under section 9 (m) 9 (n) and three years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5000 under Section 11 (i) and ordered him to pay a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the girl.