Can't keep one behind bars during pendency of case: POCSOA court

The Special Protection of Children against Sexual Offences Act (POCSOA) court granted bail to a 39-year-old man accused of allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy on the grounds that keeping a person behind bars till the time the case is decided amounts to a pre-trial conviction.

"It will take time for the court to decide on the fact if the act came under the purview of section 377 IPC (voluntarily having carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal)… Also, the accused is not a professional offender and keeping the accused in jail until the case is decided will amount to pre-trial conviction," the court said in its order.

The accused Sandeep Negi, a resident of Andheri, in his bail application, said he as well as the victim met on a gay social network, wherein, the victim had raised his age bar to be a part of the site. The two started talking and shared photographs. The accused further alleged the victim had invited him to his place in Khar on May 17.

After the mother of the victim found the accused in her son's room at 3 am, she checked her son's phone, only to find him to be a member of gay social networks. She then took him for counselling and later filed a complaint against those who had sexually assaulted her son. The accused held the victim was well aware of the site and its purpose and had willfully become a part of it and he cannot be accused of forcing himself on the victim.

The prosecution countered the argument saying there are other men involved in the crime and the police need to find them.