Delhi HC upholds man's 20-year jail term for raping minor sister

New Delhi, Sep 9 (PTI) The Delhi High Court has upheld a man's 20-year jail term for raping and impregnating his minor sister saying he ought to have been her protector.

"Such abuse rarely ends at the bar of law; it fractures a household, reorders loyalties, and can still silence the very voice the statute is designed to protect,” Justice Sanjeev Narula said in the August 27 verdict, made available on September 8.

As the survivor, her sister and parents stood together in the court not to press accusation against the brother and seek his release, the high court said such dynamics, sadly, were not uncommon and intra-familial abuse was often "shrouded in silence".

The survivor, the court said, though no longer a child in years, "yet plainly fragile, spoke in a low voice, visibly anxious, her thumbs nervously twisting".

"Such dynamics are, sadly, not uncommon. Intra-familial abuse is often shrouded in silence- silence borne at the child's expense, where duty recasts as protection of the adult, and fear that the truth, if spoken, will shatter what remains of the family," the court said.

The 15-year-old survivor, who initially claimed being raped by her elder brother in 2020, changed her statement twice.

While she first claimed having consensual sex with him, she later said he was not responsible for the pregnancy but another man, whom she called her boyfriend, was responsible.

The DNA profiling of the brother, however, matched with the foetal samples.

Upholding his punishment under POCSO Act, the court underscored the minor's age.

"The assault was not an isolated lapse but repeated, it occurred within the sanctity of the home, at the hands of a brother who ought to have been her protector...it resulted in pregnancy, concealed until the second trimester. The psychological and physical trauma inflicted upon a child in such circumstances cannot be overstated," it added.

The court directed the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) to appoint a support person and provide counselling to the victim and her family.

It asked the DSLSA to coordinate counselling for the survivor, her parents and sister through a qualified clinical psychologist or psychiatric social worker experienced in child sexual-abuse cases.

The counsellor, the court said, should also advise them on educational or vocational continuity and any further medical or legal assistance required.

The high court further asked DSLSA to facilitate Rs 13.5 lakh compensation to the survivor, who had undergone abortion, by the trial court.

The jail superintendent was ordered to ensure the convict had access to appropriate counselling and correctional programmes during his incarceration.

The court said allegations of sexual assault within the immediate family often attract extraordinary pressures- emotional, social, and economic, and it is not uncommon for family members to retract or dilute earlier allegations to shield the accused from penal consequences.

"Courts cannot mend what is broken at home and that the message must remain unambiguous that a child's bodily integrity is inviolable," the order said. PTI SKV SKV AMK AMK