Indian Penal Code, 1860
Section 354C—Offence of voyeurism—Conviction—Act of appellant peeping inside the bathroom which unfortunately, only had a curtain on the entrance of bathroom instead of a door, would certainly attract the criminality under Section 354C of IPC—Acts of appellant were not merely trivial and ill-mannered behavior but also amount to breach of privacy of victim—Such an act would certainly put a woman under embarrassment and constant fear of being observed while she takes bath even behind the four walls of a make shift bathroom—Statements of all witnesses including victim and her parents are consistent and minor discrepancies in the cross-examination are of no consequence—Conviction upheld.
[Paras 23, 24 & 29]
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012
Section 12—Sexual harassment—Conviction—Prosecution was not able to prove that victim was less than eighteen years of age at the time of incident—Since the age of the victim could not be proved to be less than eighteen years, conviction of the appellant under POCSO Act cannot be sustained and liable to be set aside.
[Para 28]