LexSTATE OF H.P. versus SURESH KUMAR @ CHHOTU
Open in Lexace · Ask the AI about this caseJudgment (excerpt)
[2008] 13S.C.R.1
)'
STATE OF H.P.
A
v.
SURESH KUMAR @ CHHOTU
(Criminal Appeal No. 973 of 2002)
AUGUST 28, 2008
B
[DR. ARIJIT PASAYAT, P. SATHASIVAM AND AFTAB
ALAM, JJ]
Penal. Code, 1860:
ss. 36;3, 368 and 376 - Kidnapping and rape - HELD: c
High Court has rightly concluded that accusations were not
established and prosecutrix was more than 16 years of age at
the time of occurrence - Findings of High Court about age of
prosecutrix cannot be said to be without any basis - High Court
was justified in its conclusions about the prosecutrix having D
accompanied the accused on her own and being a consent-
ing party to the sexual acts.
{.
CRIMINALAPPELLATE JURISDICTION: Criminal Appeal
No. 973 bf 2002
t
E
From the final Judgment and Order dated 5.11.2001 of
the High Court of Himachal Pradesh at Shimla in Crl. Appeal
No. 507 of 1999
Naresh K. Sharma and Meenakshi Arora for the Appellant
,-1
The Order' of the Court was delivered by
F
Dr. ARIJIT PASAYAT, J. Challenge in this appeal is to the
judgment of a learned Single Judge of the Himachal Pradesh
High Court directing acquittal of the respondent (hereinafter re-
ferred to as the 'accused'). Learned Sessions Judge, Kangra G
at Dharamshala had found the accused guilty of offences pun-
ishable under Sections 363, 366 and 376 of the Indian Penal
"
Code, 1860 (in short 'IPC') and sentenced him to undergo rig-
orous imprisonment for seven years and two years and fine with
default stipulation.
H
2
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
.. [2008] 13 S.C.R.
l.
Ti;2 prosecution version as unfolded during trial is as fol-
Prosecutrix (PW-2) daughter of Nirmala Devi (PW-1) and
J:igar Nath (PW-3) was, on 23.3.1996 present in her house in
viiiage Sadwan. The accused and lshwar Dass alias Sheru (who
f3
was a co-accused before the trial court and will be referred to
r
<is such hereafter) came to her house. Accused asked her to
'
.
marry him. On her refusal, the accused and the said co-accused
t11reatened to kill her brother. They made her to accompany them
at the point of a knife and was taken to different houses and
.~
~ finally to the house of Ashok Kumar (who was also a co-accuse
before the trial court and is referred to as such hereafter). From
there, she was brought to Kunalpathri temple for performing
marriage with the accused. But she refused and the priests also
refused to perform the marriage. The accused and the co-ac-
:J
cused then took the prosecutrix to the Court premises at
Dharamshala where she was forced to sign an affidavit regard-
ing soleminazation of her marriage with the accused and such
affidavit alongwith affidavit of the. accused tc the same effect
were attested by RS.Rana, Advocate (PW-5). She was then
E taken back to the house of co-accused Ashok Kumar at Shahpur
where she siayed for five days and during this period, the ac-
cused subjected her to sexual intercourse.
When the mother of the prosecutrix (PW-1) returned home
from the fields, she found the prosecutrix missing and started
F
searching for her in the neighbourhood and also at her parents'
house and finally reported the matter to the police on 26.3.1996
on the basis of which formal Ex. PWc 1/A was registered at Poe
lice Station, Nurpur by AS! Sharif Mohammad (PW-10). The fa-
ther of the prosecutrix (PW-3) who was, at the ma!erial time,
G viorking at Kullu was informed about the occurrence whereupon
!18 returned home: On the liasis of information received, the
o::ilice aiongwith PW2 recovered the prosecutrix from the house
cf co-accused Ashok Kumar vide memo Ex.P'vV3/A and she
vi<;s hor.ded over to PW-2 vide memo Ex PW-/B. The prosecu-
h
tnx •Nas got medically examined and Dr. D.R.Royal (PW12) who
·._
STATE OF H.P v. SURESH KUMAR
3
i
@ CHHOTU [DR ARIJIT PASAYAT, J)
examined her issued the MLC Ex.PW-12/B and opined that
A
the possibility of sexual intercourse qua the prosecutrix could
not be ruled out. At the time of medical examination of the pros-
ecutrix, PW12 took in possession the underwear which the pros-
ecutrix was wearing at the relevant time and also collected vagi-
- i
nal swab, prepared the slides and after sealing, handed them
B
over to the police to get them analyzed from the Chemical Ex--
aminer. After arrest, accused was also got medically examined
and Dr. Praveen Bhardwaj who examined him vide MLC
Ex.PW13/A opined that the accused was capable of perform-
ing sexual intercourse. At the time of medical examination, his Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.