NO SENTENCE BELOW 20 YEARS FOR AGGRAVATED SEXUAL ASSAULT UNDER POCSO: SC:

On May 26, the Supreme Court of India dismissed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) that sought a reduction in the sentence of a 23-year-old man who had been convicted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO). The petitioner was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for committing an aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a 6-year-old child. A bench comprising Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma declined to interfere with the sentence, observing that the punishment awarded was the minimum statutory sentence prescribed under Section 6 of the POCSO Act.

The convict’s counsel urged the Court to exercise its inherent jurisdiction to reduce the sentence, citing "extraordinary circumstances." She argued that the petitioner was only 23 years old and that serving a 20-year prison term would effectively destroy his life and future. She also submitted that there was a delay of six days in the registration of the FIR, and further noted that despite both parents of the victim being medical assistants, they allegedly failed to notice any injuries or signs of trauma, including bleeding, on the child’s body.

Despite these arguments, the Supreme Court maintained that it found no compelling reason to intervene, particularly as the sentence imposed was the bare minimum mandated by law for such a grave and heinous offence. Accordingly, the Court dismissed the plea, upholding the punishment awarded by the lower court.

Justice Nagarathna remarked: "What is the minimum punishment? 20 years. Both Courts have granted that...There is medicinal evidence as well. You have been granted 20 years under POCSO and not under Section 376 [IPC]. We cannot reduce the sentence if its 20 years. What extraordinary circumstances? Every case [you say its extraordinary circumstances]. Incident happened when? After the amendment [2019 amendment which increased punishment for aggravated sexual assaul]. How do we help you? What's why we asked what is the minimum? The Act does not permit us. It is a henious offence-sexual assault on a 6 years old minor. It is a Parliamentary section which mandates 20 years, how can Court reduce?"

During the hearing, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, after examining the relevant documents on record, informed the counsel for the petitioner that the plea of juvenility had already been considered and rejected. The Court noted that the petitioner was found to be over 18 years of age at the time the offence was committed and therefore could not be treated as a juvenile under the law.

Following this, the bench dismissed the prayer for a reduction in sentence, emphasizing that Section 6 of the POCSO Act, as amended in 2019, prescribes a minimum punishment of 20 years for the offence of aggravated penetrative sexual assault. The Court made it clear that this statutory mandate leaves no scope for judicial discretion or reduction in sentence using the Court's inherent powers.

The Special Leave Petition was filed in challenge to the judgment delivered by the Bombay High Court on January 8, 2024, which had upheld the trial court’s conviction and sentence. However, the Supreme Court refused to interfere, affirming that given the nature of the offence and the legislative intent reflected in the 2019 amendment, the minimum punishment must be enforced strictly.