The Special Judge (POCSO), Imphal West on Monday released two alleged accused in POCSO case on bail on their furnishing PR Bond of Rs 1 lakh with one surety of the like amount as they were languishing in custody for more than 180 days and the chargesheet is yet to file before the court.
Dayananda Heigrujam Diya (38), son of (L) H Ibomcha and Shagolsem Sanahal (38), son of Sh Mani Singh, both from Uchiwa Leirak Achouba, Imphal West district were arrested on December 10, 2021 in connection with a case of a 13-year-old minor girl who was sexually assaulted on September 1, 2021.
Both the accused have been in custody since December 11, 2021 after their arrest following the complaint from the victim's mother on December 6, 2021, that the two accused persons sexually assaulted her daughter inside the departmental store located at Mayang Imphal Bazar where she was sleeping. Her daughter was threatened with dire consequences if she revealed to anybody about the incident, the mother had complained but she later came to know about the incident when her daughter told her about it. Due to lack of legal knowledge, she could not report the matter in time, she had said.
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Wives of the two accused, through their counsels, filed bail applications on the ground of languishing in custody for more than 180 days since the date of arrest as the statutory period of 180 days as mandated U/s 167 Cr.P.C.is matured and the prosecution had failed to submit charge sheet/final report till date.
Special PP had submitted that the accused persons had committed a heinous offence and there are chances of absconding from the case and might have hampered and tempered the material evidence.
The court, after perusal of the materials, found that the two accused filed bail applications twice; the earlier bail application was rejected on March 25, 2022. However, the records revealed that they stayed under custody for more than 180 days. Therefore, the two accused were released on bail as the provision of statutory period U/s 167(2) CrPC is matured. Till date no charge sheet/final form has also been received from the concerned PS.
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While releasing them, the court put conditions that they should cooperate with the investigation, that they should appear before the court or the IO of the case when directed, they should not influence prosecution witnesses and they should not leave the state without prior permission from the court.
