Such Handling Of Criminal Cases Leaves Scars Not Only On Individuals But Also Justice System: Supreme Court Acquits Man In 4-Yr-Old Girl’s Rape Case
The Supreme Court remarked that a grave and distressing case of brutal sexual assault upon a 4-year old girl stands before the Court, enveloped in layers of investigative apathy and procedural infirmities.
Justice Vikram Nath, Justice Sandeep Mehta, Supreme Court
The Supreme Court has acquitted a man in a case involving sexual assault upon a four-year-old minor girl in the year 2013.
The Court was hearing a Criminal Appeal filed by the accused challenging the Judgment of the Gujarat High Court, which upheld his conviction for the offences punishable under Sections 363, 376(2)(i), and 201 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) and Sections 3 and 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act).
The two-Judge Bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta remarked, “This Court cannot remain oblivious to the sobering reality that such handling of criminal cases leaves scars not merely upon the individuals involved but upon the justice system itself. When investigations are carried out in a manner that betrays their foundational purpose, and trials become mechanical exercises divorced from the quest for truth, the resulting miscarriage of justice reverberates far beyond the confines of the courtroom. It erodes public faith, instils uncertainty in victims, and sends a chilling message to society at large that the pursuit of justice may falter not at the altar of complexity but at the hands of indifference.”
The Bench said that the criminal law, which must stand as a bulwark protecting the vulnerable, risks becoming an instrument of unintended cruelty when procedural lapses and institutional negligence overshadow substantive justice.
AOR Vijay Kumar appeared for the Appellant/Accused, while Standing Counsel (AOR) Swati Ghildiyal appeared for the Respondent/State.
Court’s Observations
The Supreme Court after hearing the contentions of the counsel, observed, “A grave and distressing case of brutal sexual assault upon a four-year old girl1 stands before this Court, enveloped in layers of investigative apathy and procedural infirmities. The First Information Report, despite the informant’s professed complete knowledge of the incident, is bereft of even the most rudimentary details, neither the name of the accused person (appellant herein) nor those of the purported witnesses of the last seen together circumstance find mention.”
The Court added that what followed was an investigation hopelessly botched and a trial conducted with a pedantic rigidity that obscured, rather than unveiled, the truth.
“The highly unnatural conduct of the witnesses, marked by gross insensitivity/rank apathy, contradictions and apparent concoctions raises serious doubts about the reliability of the prosecution’s case. Yet, in face of this disturbing matrix, the accused-appellant stands convicted and has remained behind bars for nearly thirteen long years”, it said.
The Court noted that the entire story of the prosecution wherein it has been claimed that the accused-Appellant was seen throwing out the child victim in a denuded condition after committing forcible sexual assault upon her is not established by any credible or reliable evidence.
“We further find the conduct of the police officers who conducted the investigation of the case to be highly pedantic and gravely negligent”, it further remarked.
The Court, therefore, concluded that it is firmly established that the prosecution case is clearly missing the key component of an unbroken chain of incriminating circumstances to convict the accused-Appellant on the basis of last seen together circumstance.
Accordingly, the Apex Court allowed the Appeal and acquitted the accused.
Cause Title- Manojbhai Jethabhai Parmar (Rohit) v. State of Gujarat (Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 1433)
