A Sessions Court in Mumbai’s Dindoshi sentenced a 32-year-old man to a year in jail, eight years after he stalked and harassed a 15-year-old girl back in 2015.
In September 2015, the girl’s mother filed a complaint. According to the complaint, the girl used to go to her tuition after returning from school. On September 1, 2015, around 1.50 p.m., as the girl was riding her bike to her tuition, the accused called her and said, “aaja, aaja (come, come).” The girl got frightened and yelled for help. The accused ran away from the scene.
On September 3, the accused did the same thing, and the next day, he went to the girl’s building and kept an eye on her. When the girl told her parents about the man, they began looking for the accused. On September 6, the accused was identified by the girl, and a case was filed against him.
The accused, on the other hand, pleaded “not guilty” and denied all of the charges levelled against him.
“I am of the opinion that the prosecution has rightly proved that the accused has followed the minor victim girl and made attempts repeatedly by saying “aaja, aaja” despite a clear indication of her disinterest,” said Judge AZ Khan, who was hearing the case.
The court refused to consider mitigating circumstances, such as the accused’s wife and three-year-old daughter, because it determined that this constituted sexual harassment.
The court ruled that the accused’s offences were neither committed under duress nor on provocation on the part of the girl.
“The accused committed such offences with the minor, as a result of which he is not entitled to the lenient view as contended by the accused and his advocate. The accused is not entitled to the benefit of the provisions laid out in the Probation of Offenders Act,” the Court stated.
