Trauma In Mother’s Mind That Minor Unmarried Daughter Is Pregnant Would Lead To Dilemma: Kerala HC Quashes POCSO Proceedings Against Mother For Not Reporting Offence
The Kerala High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a mother of a minor victim for not reporting a POCSO offence while observing that the trauma in her mind when she hears information that her unmarried daughter is 18 weeks pregnant would normally marque the mind to indecisiveness.
The Court allowed the Petition filed by the mother (Petitioner) who was accused under Section 21 read with Section 19(1) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act). The Bench noted that the delay in reporting the incident to the authorities was not deliberate but arose from the “trauma and shock” of finding her unmarried 17-year-old daughter’s pregnancy.
A Single Bench of Justice A. Badharudeen observed, “True that mother failed to inform the occurrence to the police, but it is to be noted that, as argued by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the trauma and shock in the mind of the mother when she hears information that her unmarried daughter is 18 weeks pregnant would normally marque the mind of a mother to indecisiveness, inactiveness and dilemma. In such cases, the mother would definitely need some reasonable time to return to normalcy. Then also the trauma may dangle on the intellectual capabilities of the mother for quite a long time.”
Advocate P. Sanjay appeared for the Petitioner, while Public Prosecutor M.P. Prasanth represented the Respondent.
The Petitioner had taken her minor daughter to a hospital where doctors confirmed her pregnancy. The Petitioner subsequently took her daughter to a private hospital rather than the Government Medical College as advised. A report was filed by the doctor, and the police recorded the statement of the minor victim the next day. The Petitioner was charged under Section 21 read with Section 19(1) of the POCSO Act for her alleged failure to inform authorities immediately after discovering the pregnancy.
The Petitioner pointed out her ordeal and trauma as a mother who also is forced to face trial along with the main accused who destroyed the life of her daughter, for an offence for which she has no mens rea.
It was also argued that Section 19(1) of the POCSO Act did not stipulate a specified time to provide the information regarding commission or apprehension that an offence is likely to be committed.
Quashing the proceedings, the Court stated, “Adding criminal prosecution on a mother, already in such a traumatic situation, would be adding chilly powder to a deep wound.”
Consequently, the Court held, “When the mother fails to inform the same to the police, it could not be held as deliberate or willful as discernible from the facts of the instant case. In fact, here on 4.6.2021 the police registered the case as informed by the doctor. Therefore, in this case, it could not be held that there is deliberate or willful failure on the part of the mother to report the case as alleged, and therefore, the criminal proceedings against the mother in the facts of this particular case cannot be justified.”
Accordingly, the High Court allowed the Petition.
Cause Title: X v. State of Kerala (Neutral Citation: 2024:KER:85237)
Appearance:
Petitioner: Advocates P. Sanjay, Rahul Raj P., Kiran Narayanan, Prasoon Sunny, Amrutha M. Nair, Paul Varghese (Pallath) and Biju Meenattoor
Respondent: Public Prosecutor M.P. Prasanth