The court was told that the victim had no objection for quashing the proceedings and she has filed an application before the trial court stating that she does not want to proceed against the accused and the same was taken on record.
The Bombay High Court criticised the manner in which a special judge imposed only a 3-year jail sentence on a man convicted for attempting to rape a child, particularly when the POCSO Act called for a stricter penalty.
The Court noted that because of POCSO Act, a boy aged 20 years could be held guilty of rape for having consensual sex with a girl aged 17 years 364 days, and that such cases were overburdening the justice system.
The Court stated that although a minor's consent was immaterial, whether or not she consented to sexual intercourse was a matter of evidence given that she voluntarily accompanied the accused to where he raped her.