Ghaziabad Court Acquits Man in 2014 Kidnapping and Rape Case After 12-Year Legal Battle
In a significant ruling, a special Pocso court in Ghaziabad has acquitted a man accused of kidnapping and raping a minor in 2014, ordering his immediate release after a protracted legal process spanning over a decade. The case, which involved 190 hearings across 17 different courts, concluded with the court citing inconsistencies in the survivor's testimony and insufficient evidence to secure a conviction.
Court Cites Inconsistencies in Survivor's Statement
Additional sessions judge Neeraj Gautam, presiding over the case, highlighted critical contradictions in the statement of the survivor, who was the key prosecution witness. The judge noted that her evidence was unreliable and did not meet the standards of a "sterling witness" as established by Supreme Court precedents, including Krishna Kumar Malik v. State of Haryana and Rai Sandeep alias Deepu v. State of NCT of Delhi.
"The evidence of the victim is contradictory on various crucial points, casting doubt on the prosecution's narrative. There is a lack of conclusive and positive evidence on record to convict the accused," the court stated in its ruling. The prosecution failed to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt, leading to the acquittal with the benefit of doubt.
Case Background and Legal Proceedings
The matter originated from an FIR registered with Kavinagar police on September 26, 2014, by the minor's father. He alleged that his daughter had been kidnapped by the same accused the previous year, with a related case pending in the Meerut ADJ court. The father suspected the abduction was an attempt to prevent her from testifying in the earlier case.
Police located the accused and the survivor on September 30, 2014, and after medical tests and a magistrate-recorded statement, added charges under Section 376 of the IPC for rape and Section 3/4 of the Pocso Act for penetrative sexual assault of a minor. A chargesheet was filed on October 25, 2014.
Key developments in the case include:
- Charges were framed against the accused on June 27, 2016, two years after the incident.
- The case was transferred multiple times between courts, with the accused's statement under Section 313 of the CrPC recorded on February 27, 2026, where he denied all allegations.
- Recording of evidence began only on March 24, 2025, nearly 11 years after the FIR.
Medical Evidence and Witness Testimonies
The prosecution presented five witnesses, including the plaintiff and the survivor. In her testimony as PW3, the minor stated she went with the accused after being threatened with the leak of her photographs. However, the court found discrepancies in her accounts under Section 164 and during cross-examination, where she mentioned walking to M Block without informing her parents about the threats.
Medical examination revealed no external or internal injuries on the survivor's body, with a torn and healed hymen noted. The court emphasized that the medical report, as per the examiner's testimony, could not conclusively prove rape, especially since the sample was not sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for analysis.
"The medical evidence does not corroborate the prosecution's case," the judge concluded, further rejecting arguments about a similar pending case against the accused, stating it had no bearing without proven evidence.
Acquittal and Release Conditions
With the accusations not proven beyond doubt, the court acquitted the man of all charges. He was ordered to furnish a personal bond of Rs 20,000 with two sureties of the same amount under Section 437-A of the CrPC to ensure compliance with legal procedures.
This case underscores the challenges in prosecuting sexual assault cases, where evidentiary standards and witness reliability play crucial roles. The victim's identity has been protected in accordance with Supreme Court directives to safeguard privacy in sexual assault cases.
