The Delhi high court has upheld a 10 year imprisonment sentence imposed on a man who had sexually abused and exploited his minor 4 year old son. The court stated that such crimes are not committed only against an individual but on the whole society and family. 

In an order issued on Friday, the bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain rejected an appeal  of the father against the conviction orders made under POCSO Act and the Indian Penal Code by a Trial Court which held that the crime committed by the appellant cannot be taken lightly as he was under a social, familial and moral duty to protect his son.

Upon discovering that the man had committed aggravated penetrative sexual assault upon his son which was also proved by the prosecution beyond any reasonable doubt, the court was of the view that, “it is a crime not only against the individual but against the fabric of the society and family.”

Justice Jain while concluding the case stated in the order that, “the trial court also observed and considered that the child victim was aged 4 years at the time of incident when the appellant sexually assaulted him. The trial court has already taken a lenient view against the appellant and there is no reason to interfere in the punishment awarded to the appellant.” It therefore went on to reject the appeal.

The Accused in the case had urged the court to be lenient when sentencing him as he was a laborer and came from a lower strata of society struggling with financial problems. To which Justice Jain stated, “awarding an adequate sentence to a person accused of sexually abusing a child is the solemn duty of the court irrespective of his social or economic status or his domestic responsibilities.” 

It was also mentioned that the decision taken by the trial court is very well reasoned and was passed only after relevant facts were proved on record, thus there were no reasons to interfere with it.

Court also expressed its view on the significance of sentencing and the role it plays to prevent such crimes from occurring in future. One of the central aims of criminal law is to ensure that the punishment imposed is in line with the seriousness of the crime and the way it was carried out, striving for a sentence that is fair, proportionate, and suitable to the circumstances.

The court further observed that sexual abuse or sexual exploitation is a serious problem now impacting a huge number of children and therefore it becomes necessary that it receives adequate attention of every person concerned with administering justice.