Making Child Touch Private Parts Is Aggravated Sexual Assault: Delhi HC
Court upholds conviction under POCSO, dismisses appeal of man sentenced to seven years in jail.
GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 7th Jan: The Delhi High Court has ruled that making a small child touch private parts with sexual intent amounts to aggravated sexual assault under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna delivered the verdict while dismissing an appeal filed by a man convicted for flashing his private parts before a four-year-old girl and making her touch them. The appellant had challenged his conviction and seven-year rigorous imprisonment awarded by a trial court in July 2024.
The court held that sexual assault on a child below the age of 12 constitutes aggravated sexual assault under POCSO. “Making a small child touch the private part with sexual intent amounts to aggravated sexual assault and therefore, the offence under Section 10 POCSO Act was established,” the court observed.
Rejecting the defence claim that the survivor had been tutored, the High Court said the child’s core allegations remained consistent and that minor variations in her testimony did not affect credibility. It also ruled that counselling by Delhi Commission for Women counsellors, done to help the child deal with trauma, could not be termed as tutoring.
The court further rejected the argument that delay in registering the FIR weakened the case, noting that it was natural for the child’s mother to wait for her husband’s return before approaching the police.
It also observed that sexual abuse of children often goes unreported due to social stigma, shame and fear, particularly when the offender is known to the family.
However, the High Court set aside the appellant’s conviction under certain Indian Penal Code sections, including sexual harassment, since no specific charges had been framed for those offences.
