On Wednesday, the Kerala High Court made a landmark judgment extending the scope of the law against rape, stating that the act of an accused rubbing his penis against the victim’s thighs is equivalent to rape. According to the court, if a non-penetrative act provides sexual gratification to the accused similar to penetrative sex, it is regarded as rape under the Indian Penal Code.
An appeal by a man convicted of raping a minor was being heard by Justices K Vinod Chandran and Ziyad Rahman AA. The alleged offender had asked the court to consider whether his actions to penetrate the gap between the child’s thighs may equate to rape.
Counsel for the accused asserted that the man inserted his genitals between the victim’s thighs and that such an act did not constitute rape under Section 375. Although the Kerala High Court noted that the law on rape has been amended over time to broaden its definition, it also includes penetration of any part of a woman’s body. The court recognized that manipulating the body of a minor to simulate penetration also qualifies as rape in this case.
The rape case
The 2015 case involves the repeated sexual abuse of a 11-year-old girl in Kerala’s Ernakulam district. After complaining of stomach pain, the victim and her mother went to a government medical camp in Thirumarady. As part of the medical examination, the child disclosed that her neighbor had previously sexually assaulted her.
Despite the doctor’s recommendation, the victim’s mother postponed filing a police complaint for fear of society. Upon inquiry from Childline officials, the woman filed a complaint. The neighbor was arrested after an FIR was filed against him. The man was booked under various sections of the POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act), including aggravated sexual assault and sexual harassment, and also under sections of the Indian Penal Code, including rape.
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In her statement, the minor survivor described ‘multiple incidents of sexual assault’, including holding the accused’s genitals while he ejaculated, showing her obscene pictures, and attempted insertion of his penis into her mouth. She also stated that the accused man, who was close to their family, threatened her into staying silent. Having been found guilty by a lower court in Kerala, the accused was sentenced to life imprisonment for the rest of his life and fined.
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