SHILLONG —The Supreme Court has acquitted an East Jaintia Hills man sentenced to 10 years in prison for allegedly sexually assaulting his 11-year-old niece in 2015, holding that the prosecution failed to produce sufficient evidence to sustain his conviction.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta set aside the judgments of the trial court and the Meghalaya High Court, citing the delay in lodging the FIR, contradictions in the prosecution’s account and the failure of the girl and her cousin to identify the accused in court.
The case arose from allegations that the man sexually assaulted the child, who has a 40% intellectual disability, at her residence in May 2015. According to the prosecution, the girl later disclosed the incident to her cousin, who informed her mother. The mother did not initially pursue the complaint because the girl did not confirm the allegation when questioned.
The bench questioned the mother’s response, observing that a mother’s concern would be expected to be “heightened” after receiving such a complaint, particularly when the child had an intellectual disability. The court also found inconsistencies in the prosecution’s account of the accused’s relationship with the family.
Another major gap was the prosecution’s failure to examine a teacher to whom the girl had reportedly first disclosed the incident. The judges described the teacher’s role as “pivotal” and noted that the prosecution had offered no explanation for not calling her as a witness.
The bench acknowledged that the child’s intellectual disability required consideration when assessing her testimony. “A certain degree of latitude would have to be given while appreciating her evidence,” it said. However, the judges noted that she had failed to identify the accused in court.
Concluding that the evidence “falls woefully short” of the standard required to sustain a conviction, the Supreme Court acquitted the man and ordered his release if he was not wanted in another case.
