KARACHI: A sessions court has sentenced a man to 14 years in prison in case a pertaining to sexually abusing a child.

Additional District and Sessions Judge (South) Abdul Zahoor Chandio found Ashook guilty of sexually abusing a minor girl and taking inappropriate photographs of her, and sentenced him to 14 years in prison under Section 377-B (punishment for sexual abuse) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

“There is no evidence of previous enmity or ill-will between the complainant and the accused, nor has the defence provided any suggestion or proof to establish the existence of such enmity during cross-examination of the complainant or any prosecution witnesses,” the court observed.

It further added: “The defence failed to confront the complainant or any other key witnesses, such as the accused’s own daughter-in-law, with any plausible motive for falsely implicating the accused and it cannot be believed that the victim baby of minor age has capacity to fabricate such serious allegations against the accused, therefore, the ocular evidence is natural, coherent, and reliable, leaving no doubt regarding the accused’s culpability.”

The court also imposed a fine of Rs1 million on the convict, and on default he would serve additional imprisonment for six months.

According to state prosecutor Irfana Qadri, the minor survivor used to visit her neighbour’s house while her mother was at work. One day, the daughter-in-law of convict Ashook checked his mobile phone to call someone where she found some inappropriate photographs of the minor girl.

The daughter-in-law later informed about the incident with the parents of the minor girl. In her testimony, the minor girl disclosed that the accused lured her with candies and photographed her.

The court noted that in the sexual abuse case, the statement of the victim could be sufficient for conviction, provided it is credible and corroborated by other evidence. “It is settled law that testimony of a victim, especially in cases of sexual offences, holds significant weight,” the court observed.

During the trial, the complainant’s counsel, Barrister Bahzad Akbar, along with the state prosecutor, argued that the prosecution had successfully established its case against the accused by examining 11 witnesses.

Referring to the medical evidence, they contended that the case did not involve rape but rather sexual abuse. They further argued that the testimony of the victim, along with the statements of independent witnesses presented during the trial, was sufficient to convict the accused person.

On the other hand, the defence counsel claimed innocence of his client and argued that the FIR was lodged after delay. He also contended that his client was falsely implicated in the case over a personal enmity.

However, the court rejected the defence plea and noted that both the victim’s testimony and the witness’s account meet the settled principles of being confidence-inspiring, consistent, and free from malice. “There is no enmity or ulterior motive for the complainant to falsely implicate the accused, and the defense’s inability to prove otherwise further underscores the credibility of the prosecution’s case,” the court observed.

Published in Dawn, December 2nd, 2024