Mumbai: 86-year-old gets 3 years in jail for sexual harassment of 15-year-old

The man was arrested and booked under Section 354 B (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (PCOSO) Act.(Representational image)

A 86-YEAR-OLD man was sentenced to three years in jail on Friday by the special POCSO court for sexually harassing a teenager at a public park in Mumbai in 2018.

At the time of the incident, the girl was 15 years old. During her deposition, the girl told the court that the accused approached her at the park and asked several questions, including her name and in which class was she studying. The accused caught hold of her hand and kissed it. Following this, as she started walking away, the elderly man told her that he wanted to become her friend.

The girl went on to tell her mother about the incident. Later in the evening, when she went to the park again with her family members, the accused approached her again. At that time, he touched her inappropriately, the girl told the court. As her mother, who saw this, ran towards them, the man apologised.

In the meantime, many passersby had assembled at the spot. As the accused tried to flee, he was caught and the police informed. The man was arrested and booked under Section 354 B (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (PCOSO) Act.

During trial, while the prosecution sought stringent punishment for the accused on the ground that he had sexually harassed a minor in a public space, the man claimed that he was falsely implicated. The court relied on the girl’s testimony to convict the elderly man.