Mumbai: A special court earlier this week acquitted a 45-year-old man from the charges of sexually assault on his minor daughter, after the daughter said in her deposition before the court, to save herself from his scoldings, she lodged a false complaint against him.
The 14-year-old girl in her statements before the police had alleged, on February 16, 2018, when she was fast asleep, in the middle of the night, she sensed something, when she opened her eyes, she found her father sleeping beside her and inappropriately touching her, after which she did scream, but her mother did not hear her cries for help. The next morning feeling miserable about the incident, she left her house and did not return for four days, but what helped the defence Advocate Ashwini Gangrude, to bring home the guilt was the girl’s statement in her deposition before the court.
In her deposition, she did not support her earlier statements, instead she said due to low attendance in school her father would scold her, to save herself from his scoldings, she lodged a false complaint against him. The mother of the girl told the court, “Our home hardly measures 12X12 sq. ft, if she would have screamed for help that night, I would have heard; she had returned home late in the night due to which my husband had beaten her with stick.”
“She has an affair with a married man, we have been keeping a constant watch on her, for her to not run away; Previously at least three or four times, she ran away from home.” her mother added Additional Sessions Judge M.A Baraliya acquitted the 45-year-old man of the non-bailable offence of sexual harassment with the surety of Rs.15,000.