The Delhi High Court has refused to quash an FIR registered against a man for sexually abusing his minor son, saying it would be unfair to deny justice to the child only because the incident involves his ”real father” and the parents have a matrimonial discord.
While the accused claimed a matrimonial dispute with his estranged wife has been converted into a false criminal case, the court said from the material on record, it was ”not persuaded to reach a conclusion that the allegations are absurd (and) highly improbable”.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma observed that the truth would become clear only during the trial and the child has the constitutional right to get justice if he has been sexually abused.
Dismissing the accused’s plea to quash the FIR under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, the court said that in view the contents of the FIR, the other supporting statements and documents, the contention of the accused that the allegations were baseless and false appeared to be premature at this stage.
”This court remains conscious of the fact that such cases cannot be treated as cases of matrimonial discord but notes that the child who is victim in this case has his own individual constitutional right to get justice in case he has been sexually abused. To deny the child victim the right to get such justice only because one of the parties involved happens to be his real father and his father and mother have matrimonial discord will be highly unfair,” said the court in its order dated September 20.
”Holding otherwise will amount to throttling the judicial proceedings and denying opportunity to get justice to the victim child… The petition stands dismissed in the above terms,” it added. The prosecution opposed the plea on the ground that the allegations against the applicant were substantiated by the report of the psychologist and counsellor and the statement recorded under the law.
