High Court Chides Attempt By Accused, Minor's Mother To Settle Sex Assault Case

Deprecating an attempt to settle a sex assault case for Rs 2 lakh by the accused and the minor survivor's mother, the Delhi High Court has expressed anguish that the child's physical and mental trauma has been "weighed" in terms of money.

It held that such heinous offences could not be taken lightly nor any mercy can be shown. The court also said the child's mother was expected to understand the pain and trauma undergone by the minor.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, while denying bail to accused Sabuddin in the case, said in these circumstances, the child feels voiceless, but the court is expected to understand and hear the voiceless.

"This court notes with a sense of sadness that the victim child's physical and mental trauma has been weighed in terms of money, that is, Rs 2 lakh by the mother of the child victim herself which is unexpected and unacceptable. Such heinous offences cannot be taken lightly nor mercy can be shown."

"The mother was expected to understand the pain and trauma undergone by her child, who was only six years of age and had been violently sexually assaulted and wounded physically and mentally by two culprits," the judge said.

The other accused in the case was a juvenile.

The high court was hearing the bail plea of Sabuddin, who has been in custody since October 17, 2021. The accused sought bail on grounds that the survivor's mother has already agreed to a compromise in the matter with them, and a settlement deed has been placed on record and that she had no objection if he was granted the relief.

The bail plea was opposed by the prosecutor, who said the man was accused of committing a heinous and serious offence on a child who was only six years old, and the medical record as well as the minor has supported the prosecution case.

The high court said, "The child was only six years of age and the mental trauma and physical pain of the child cannot be expressed in words." "The gravity of the offence is aggravated even further by the fact that five bail applications of the accused were rejected, and now they have placed on record a compromise deed with the mother of the victim child wherein it is stated that the matter has been settled between the parties upon payment of Rs 2 lakhs," it said.

This in itself "speaks volumes about how desperately the accused persons have tried to win over the family of the victim child", the court added.

It said at times, the stories of cruelty and sexual assault, which are explained in the form of a medical report and the statement of the survivor recorded by the trial court and the police, speak volumes.

"The child in these circumstances is voiceless, however, the court is expected to understand and hear the voiceless... "While deprecating the attempt of the accused persons and the mother of the victim child to have tried to settle the matter for Rs 2 lakh, and appearing in the court to state that the accused be granted bail, this court finds no ground to grant bail to the present accused or applicant," Justice Sharma said, adding, "The present bail application stands dismissed."

According to the prosecution, the incident took place in October 2021 when the two accused took the child, who was playing outside his house, to a lonely place on the pretext of getting him some eatables and sexually assaulted him.

It said the child was crying and bleeding, after which the accused fled the spot and the minor informed his parents about the incident.

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