Overview

• The Bombay High Court upheld a five-year prison sentence for a former Lieutenant Colonel convicted under the POCSO Act for sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl in February 2020.
• The court dismissed the officer's appeal against the Armed Forces Tribunal's January 2024 ruling that confirmed the General Court Martial's 2021 verdict.
• The victim, the daughter of an Army havildar, consistently narrated the incident and demonstrated with clarity how the accused behaved inappropriately after her father left the room.
• The accused claimed his actions stemmed from 'grandfatherly/fatherly love,' but the court rejected this defense, emphasizing the victim's instinct in identifying a 'bad touch.'
• The court found no errors in the findings of the General Court Martial or Armed Forces Tribunal and ruled there was no violation of the accused's fundamental rights.