New Delhi – An Indian court has ruled that the bag of a child cannot be considered sexual assault as long as there is no ‘skin-to-skin contact’ or ‘sexual intent’. The Bombay High Court ruling on January 19, Pushpa V. Ganediwala, removed a 39-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl in 2016 from any wrongdoing. It has drawn widespread criticism from activists in a country plagued by rape and sexual violence.
During the trial, the girl accused the accused in the case, a man who only has the name Satish, that he brought her to his house under the pretext that he was giving her food and then touching her breast and trying to remove her clothes.
In her ruling, Judge Ganediwala said the incident could not be defined as sexual assault under the National Child Protection Act (POCSO) as ‘according to the definition of’ sexual assault ‘, a’ physical contact with sexual intent. without penetration ‘is an essential component of the offense.’
Under the POCSO Act, sexual assault is defined as when someone “sexually intentionally” touches a child’s genitals, anus or breasts or a child touches any other person in those areas, or commits any other act of sexual intent involving physical contact without penetration. ”
Anyone convicted under the law is sentenced to three years in prison. A lower court had earlier sentenced Satish to the minimum term, but the Bombay High Court overturned the verdict and found Satish guilty of the less serious charge of indecentuating a woman’s modesty, and sentenced him to one year in prison. plus a fine of 500 rupees ($ 7).
“The act of squeezing the breast of the 12-year-old child, in the absence of specific details of whether the top was removed or whether he inserted his hand into the top and pressed her breast, would not be in the definition of sexual do not fall. assault, ”the court said.
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The ruling angered activists who had fought for years for the sexual safety of women and children in India.
Dhananjay Tingal, executive director of the children’s rights group Bachpan Bachao Andolan, told CBS News that they would appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court of India if their legal team rules that the court in Bombay misinterprets the POSCO law.
“We consulted legal experts. In a day or two we should make a decision,” Tingal said.
India has a sad record of sexual violence against women and girls. According to government data released in September last year, an average of 87 rapes were reported every day in 2019. This was an increase of more than 7% from 2018.
In March last year, India four men hanged for the brutal gang rape of a paramedic student in Delhi in 2012. The rape and murder of the 23-year-old woman caused massive street protests across India and brought worldwide attention to the plight of India’s women. But since then not much has changed.