"Every Act Of Child Sexual Abuse Is An Assault Upon Humanity": Supreme Court Restores Life Term Of POCSO Convict For Aggravated Penetrative Assault On 3-Year-Old
Invoking Ivan Karamazov's reflection on unatoned tears of a child, the Bench held that enhanced 2019 POCSO penalties cannot apply retrospectively to reduce sentence.
The Supreme Court restored the sentence of life imprisonment awarded to a man convicted of aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a 3-year-old girl, holding that every act of child sexual abuse constitutes an assault upon humanity itself. The apex court set aside a High Court order that had modified the sentence to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment by relying on the 2019 Amendment to the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. The Court clarified that applying enhanced statutory penalties retrospectively violates Article 20(1) of the Constitution of India.
Opening the judgment with Fyodor Dostoevsky’s literary reflection from The Brothers Karamazov, the Court emphasized that innocent, painful tears of a tormented child must be atoned for by soothing the child through judicial powers. The Bench held that the High Court committed a gross error in applying the amended provisions of Section 6 of the POCSO Act to an offence committed in 2016. The Court observed that while life imprisonment was the appropriate punishment given the heinous nature of the crime, the term would not carry the express stipulation that it must endure until the remainder of the offender's natural life.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Aravind Kumar and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi observed, “The High Court has grossly erred in modifying the sentence imposed by the Trial Court. The High Court cryptically records that although the date of offence is prior to the enforcement of the Amendment to Section 6 of POCSO in 2019 by which the minimum sentence was enhanced from 10 years to 20 years imprisonment, the High Court was of the opinion that 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for both offences would suffice. We are unable to comprehend the rationale of the sentence imposed by the Learned High Court. On one hand, the High Court considers the fact that the victim was a minor girl aged 3 but thereafter finds it appropriate to reduce the sentence to 20 years rigorous imprisonment for both offences, i.e., Section 376(2)(i) of IPC and Section 6 of POCSO Act (Amendment Act, 2019) in view of the application of Section 42 of the POCSO Act, which in our considered opinion and reasoning above is not tenable as per Article 20(1) of the Constitution”.
“Every act of child sexual abuse is an assault upon humanity itself which aims at rule of law. It begins with safe homes that lead to the safer society…”, the Bench further noted.
Ranbir Singh Yadav, AOR appeared for the appellant and Ankita Sharma, AOR appeared for the respondent.
The brief facts of the case date back to February 17, 2016, when the appellant, Balesh Kumar Kuraiti, lured a 3-year-old minor girl, took her away to a badi, and subjected her to aggravated penetrative sexual assault. The victim’s family discovered her crying with severe facial injuries, bite marks, and active bleeding from her private parts. Following an investigation and medical examination confirming sexual violence and the presence of human sperm, an FIR was registered under Section 376(2)(i) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 4 and 8 of the POCSO Act.
The Trial Court (Additional Sessions Judge, FTC, Rajnandgaon) convicted the appellant on April 18, 2017, under Section 376(2)(i) IPC and Section 6 POCSO Act, sentencing him to concurrent life imprisonment. On appeal, the Chhattisgarh High Court confirmed the conviction on February 14, 2024, but modified the sentence to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment by invoking Section 42 POCSO Act along with the 2019 POCSO Amendment. The appellant challenged this before the Supreme Court, which issued notice limited strictly to the quantum of sentence.
“A child who ought to grow up in an atmosphere of love, trust and security but instead learns fear, mistrust and vulnerability. The innocence once stolen can mostly never be returned. The trauma suffered by a child, if left unaddressed and unhealed may influence the manner in which that child perceives relationships, authority and society itself. It can impair emotional well-being, education, self-worth and the ability to lead a life of dignity. The damage extends beyond the individual victim, affecting families, communities and ultimately the collective conscience of the Society, which leads to social disintegration”, the Bench said.
“With greatest concern to our children, we deem it appropriate to direct all the appropriate authorities concerned, right from the police, to ensure that the legal process is less intimidating and more reassuring to the children who are unfortunate sufferers of harsh illegal acts. There has to be timely and effective enforcement of justice and protection to the child victims at all times”, the Bench further said.
In its operative directions, the Court allowed the appeal, set aside the High Court's judgment, and restored the Trial Court's order of life imprisonment for offences under Section 6 POCSO Act (pre-amendment) and Section 376(2)(i) IPC. The sentences are to run concurrently with a fine of Rs. 10,000/- each, without the stipulation that imprisonment shall run for the remainder of the appellant's natural life. The Court further directed all relevant authorities, including police, to ensure child-sensitive, reassuring legal processes for child survivors.
Cause Title: Balesh Kumar Kuraiti v. State of Chhattisgarh (Neutral Citation: 2026 INSC 850)
Appearances:
Appellant: Ranbir Singh Yadav, AOR, Prateek Yadav, Puran Mal Saini, Anzu K. Varkey, Shivika Nehra, Advocates.
Respondent: Ankita Sharma, AOR, Arjun D Singh, Ishika Neogi, Advocates.