Bombay HC judgement on sexual assault ‘obnoxious, unacceptable, outrageous’: Activists

Image Source : PTI/REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGE Bombay HC judgement on sexual assault ‘obnoxious, unacceptable, outrageous’: Activists
Activists and youngster rights our bodies have slammed the latest judgement of the Bombay High Court that there isn’t a sexual assault if there isn’t a ‘skin-to-skin’ contact. In a judgement handed on January 19, the Bombay High Court has stated groping a minor’s breast with out ‘skin-to-skin contact’ can’t be termed sexual assault as outlined underneath the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Justice Pushpa Ganediwala of the Nagpur bench of held that there should be “skin to skin contact with sexual intent” for an act to be thought of sexual assault.
 
It has drawn the ire of kid rights our bodies and activists, who’ve termed it “absolutely unacceptable, outrageous and obnoxious”, and referred to as for difficult the judgement.
 
Dhananjay Tingal, govt director of kid rights NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan, stated their authorized crew was wanting into the matter and all the info associated to that is being collected.
 
“We shall be appealing the Supreme court on the basis of their inputs,” Tingal informed PTI. Activist Kavita Krishnan, secretary of All India Progressive Women’s Association, referred to as it an “outrageous judgement” that goes towards the letter of the legislation.
 
“The POCSO law defines sexual assault very clearly and it has a provision for sexual touch. This notion that you will circumvent the law by saying touch with or without clothes makes no sense at all,” Krishnan stated.
 
“That is absolute rubbish and it fails the test of common sense also. For me, it’s a larger question of who qualifies to be a judge in cases related to gender,” she stated.
 
Yogita Bhayana, an activist who heads the People Against Rape in India (PARI), stated it was disappointing to listen to from a decide and such statements “motivate the criminals”.
 
“I really think it’s very regressive of her to say this,” Bhayana stated.
 
After the Nirbhaya case, Bhayana stated they had been attempting to push that even verbal gestures are included as assault, including that they wished to be extra progressive and transfer to problems with cyber bullying. “On other hand, they are talking about this!” she stated.
 
Prabhat Kumar, deputy director of Save the Children, stated nowhere within the POCSO Act itself there’s discuss skin-to-skin contact.
 
“The act talks about physical (abuse), which is largely the use of force to sexually assault. So we feel that this interpretation is not right,” Kumar stated.
 
“If there are inconsistencies in interpretation of this law, then we must choose the law with the stricter punishment for the person accused of the offence. So even that has not been complied with,” he stated.
 
Women’s rights activist Shamina Shafiq referred to as it very unlucky {that a} woman decide had come out with this judgement.
 
“As a woman, you must understand that groping while you are wearing clothes is very usual and unfortunately normal in this country and this is something that keeps on happening to women and girls. And to say such a thing will give ideas to men also and it will not act as a deterrent,” Shafiq stated.
 
“It’s shocking and the judge is a woman. I absolutely fail to understand how a woman judge can pass this kind of judgement,” social activist Shabnam Hashmi stated. 
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