6 months ago
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In a large alleviation for JD(S) person and erstwhile curate H.D. Revanna, a peculiar tribunal successful Bengaluru has discharged him from the allegation of sexually harassing his 47-year-old erstwhile maid erstwhile she was moving astatine his location successful Hassan during 2020.
The Special Court of Magistrate for transgression cases against erstwhile and contiguous MPs and MLAs declined to instrumentality cognisance of the offence nether Section 354A (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against him by stating that some the complainant and the prosecution had failed to supply tenable mentation for the tribunal to instrumentality cognisance of the alleged offence by condoning the delay, nether Section 473 of Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), of implicit 4 years successful lodging the complaint.
K.N. Shivakumar, justice of the peculiar court, successful his December 29 verdict, declined to judge the assertion of the prosecution that the complainant pistillate took implicit 4 years to lodge the ailment owed to fearfulness of governmental powerfulness of Mr. Revanna.
The Court pointed retired that she had stated successful her ailment that aft she had near her occupation astatine Mr. Revanna’s residence, a location granted to her nether a lodging strategy of the authorities was demolished, and that had she had lodged a ailment against Mr. Revanna connected demolition of her location with the Deputy Commissioner and the territory police, Hassan.
“When she had nary fearfulness successful approaching the Deputy Commissioner and the territory constabulary against Mr. Revanna erstwhile her location was allegedly demolished astatine the lawsuit of him, however travel she had specified a fearfulness to lodge ailment oregon to instrumentality ineligible enactment oregon to disclose astir incidental of alleged intersexual harassment,” the Court questioned.
Pointing retired that she had not mentioned the day oregon adjacent the twelvemonth of occurrence of alleged instances successful her complaint, the Court said that adjacent if she could not kick during 2020 to 2022, portion she was inactive moving successful his house, she could person lodged ailment consequent to 2022, aft she near the job. “But, for the reasons champion known to her, she had not done truthful till April 2024,” the Court observed. Also, adjacent the Special Investigation Team (SIT) excessively had neither recorded nor explained crushed for the hold successful launching prosecution, the Court said.
Indicating that the complainant whitethorn person forgotten the alleged incidents involving Mr. Revanna arsenic representation fades from the minds of victims oregon affected persons if the offences are not terrible successful quality owed to lapse of time, the Court said that the consequent superior offences of alleged rape by his son, Prajwal Revanna, mightiness have, arsenic an afterthought, made her adhd the alleged instances involving Mr. Revanna portion complaining against Mr. Prajwal.
Balance of involvement
The Court further said that to travel to immoderate decision arsenic to what would beryllium “the involvement of justice” — whether to condone the hold and instrumentality cognisance of the offence, oregon not to condone the hold and garbage to instrumentality cognisance of the offence — it is indispensable to measurement the equilibrium betwixt the grade of harm oregon injustice that would beryllium caused to the victim, oregon the extent of harm oregon prejudice that whitethorn beryllium caused to the accused.
On considering the quality of overt-acts alleged against Mr. Revanna, the Court said that “it appears that from specified acts, determination mightiness not beryllium immoderate specified terrible effects oregon harm oregon wounded caused to the complainant”.
The Court said that it whitethorn not beryllium indispensable to condone the hold of much than 3 years successful lodging the ailment arsenic “such an enactment whitethorn pb to unwanted hold and multiplicity of proceedings successful respect of other/severe offences [of rape] alleged successful this lawsuit against Mr. Prajwal, which is pending proceedings earlier the sessions court.”
“If immoderate specified graver effect oregon wounded was caused, decidedly she would person taken ineligible enactment against the accused without immoderate delay, arsenic she did, erstwhile her residential location was demolished astatine the lawsuit of this accused arsenic alleged successful the complaint. Even aft lapse of 3 years of alleged incident, she did not take to instrumentality immoderate specified recourse... Further, she had been moving successful the location of Mr. Revanna for astir 2 years adjacent aft alleged incident. This besides fortifies specified inference,” the Court.
“On the different hand, initiating prosecution for specified acts allegedly done by the accused who is presently a subordinate of Legislative Assembly successful the State would decidedly impact his governmental beingness vocation to immoderate extent,” the Court noted.
The High Court, in its November 19 order, had quashed the allegation of “outraging the modesty of woman” made against him nether Section 354 of the IPC, stating that nary specified allegations existed successful her ailment but had asked the peculiar tribunal to re-examine whether “it is simply a acceptable lawsuit to instrumentality cognisance nether Section 354A by condoning the hold of much than 3 years, from the dates of alleged offences, successful lodging the complaint”.
