Srinagar
A Pampore man who was accused of molesting a girl in December 2014 has been convicted by the court. The Judicial Magistrate 1st Class Pampore, Fozia Paul has granted him two months jail term and a fine of rupees 5000.
The spokesman said that acting upon the complaint the court Saturday convicted the accused Arshad Ahmad Joo under section 294/RPC, who often used to tease/molest a girl on the road.
The accused present in the court has been taken into custody and sent to central jail, Srinagar where he will suffer the imprisonment
The case was filed way back in December 2014 when the girl was on her way to her home near Rajikadal, the accused Arshad Ahmad passed indecent remarks towards the girl, which annoyed her and the passers-by. The girl called her father who came in a vehicle and took her home.
As per the court order, the court appreciated the evidence of a prosecutrix and may look for some assurance of her statement to satisfy its judicial conscience since she is a witness who is interested in the outcome of the charge leveled by her.
The order read as, “The evidence of a victim of sexual assault stands almost on a par with the evidence of an injured witness and to an extent is even more reliable.”
“Just as a witness who has sustained some injury in the occurrence, which is not found to be self-inflicted, is considered to be good witness in the sense that he is least likely to shield the real culprit, the evidence of a victim of a sexual offence is entitled to great weight, absence of corroboration notwithstanding,” it read.
Having carefully perused the record of the case, the magistrate opined that the prosecution has succeeded in establishing the guilt of the accused of the commission of offenses under section 294 of RPC beyond a reasonable doubt, as such, the accused is liable to be convicted, the court observed.
