Pocso Act being misused for ulterior motives: Kerala HC

Kochi: The Kerala High Court has observed that provisions of the Pocso Act are being misused by certain individuals to settle personal scores and achieve ulterior motives. It stressed the importance of courts critically examining such cases to ascertain whether the allegations present a prima facie case or are motivated by malice.

Justice A. Badharudeen noted that the Pocso Act was enacted to protect children from sexual abuse with stringent penal provisions. However, the Act is sometimes exploited to wreak vengeance against rivals. The court emphasized that when allegations lack credibility and appear to be motivated by ulterior intentions, courts must exercise their powers under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code or Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, to quash false cases at the threshold.

The remarks came while the court was hearing a case where a wife accused her husband of committing penetrative sexual assault on her when she was a minor, before their marriage in 2017. The couple was reportedly in a relationship for two years before their marriage.

The court observed a significant delay in filing the FIR, which alleged sexual assault in 2015. "The wife of the petitioner lodged the complaint after three years and one month, during a period when their marital relationship had soured and they became rivals. Prima facie, it appears that the allegations were raised with ulterior motives by the wife against the husband, misusing the provisions of the Pocso Act and the IPC, at a much-belated stage after their marriage," Justice Badharudeen said.

Finding the allegations unsustainable, the court quashed the final report and all proceedings against the husband, citing the lack of sufficient evidence and the delay in lodging the complaint.

With IANS inputs