Mumbai: No criminal history, young and not a flight risk – court grants bail to man booked for sexual assault of minor

As per the FIR, on March 30, when the minor girl was passing by the accused, he had blown a whistle and told her to meet him in the dark. While the girl ignored him and went to a public washroom, while returning, the man again repeated his act. Following this, the girl informed her mother and approached the police.

Special Judge Kalpana K Patil on April 19 passed the order while hearing the bail plea of the man booked by Mumbai Police under Section 354 of IPC and the POCSO Act. Advocate Heena Mistry, appearing for the accused, said that offences under Section 354 cannot be leveled against him, as no allegations of physical contact has been against the accused. Mistry claimed that during Navratri last year, the girl’s father and the man’s family had a quarrel and a false FIR was filed due to it.

Special Public Prosecutor Sureeta Singh, representing the police, said that as the girl and the accused reside in the same locality, if the man is released on bail, there are chances that he will repeat his act. The judge observed, “The FIR is about a single incident.

There are no allegations of causing any trouble to the victim prior to this incident. The accused has a fixed place of residence. Age of the accused is 22 years. There is no record of any previous criminal history of the accused. Bail application is allowed.

The court directed the man be released on bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 15,000.