Bombay high court judge Justice Pushpa Ganediwala, who faced flak over a series of judgments that were deemed as controversial for the interpretation of what constitutes as 'sexual assault' under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, has resigned.
The Bombay High Court has ruled that Pushpa Ganediwala, the former HC judge who had faced criticism for a series of controversial judgments in POCSO Act cases, is entitled to receive pension on par with a high court judge. Ganediwala was demoted as district sessions judge at the end of her additional judgeship in 2022 following an uproar over some judgments passed by her on the interpretation of what constitutes a sexual assault under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. She had filed a petition challenging a communication issued by the HC registrar declaring that she was not eligible for pension of a HC judge. The court quashed the communication and directed the registry to fix her pension with 6% interest from February 2022.
Last month, the Supreme Court collegium had withdrawn its approval to a proposal for the appointment of additional judge, Justice Ganediwala as a permanent judge of the court following her two controversial verdicts.
In the second judgment, she said sole testimony of the victim in rape cases is sufficient to fix criminal liability. "However, in the present case, considering the sub-standard quality of testimony of the prosecutrix, it would be a grave injustice to send the appellant behind bars for 10 years, her order said.
Justice Pushpa Ganediwala recently acquitted a man accused of groping a 12-year-old girl's breast because he did not make skin-to-skin contact and days earlier, ruled that holding the hands of a five-year-old girl and unzipping the trousers do not amount to "sexual assault" under the POCSO Act.
Justice Ganediwala this month acquitting a 39-year-old man for groping a minor girl, noting that there was no "skin-to-skin contact with sexual intent" has faced severe flak.
Groping a minor's breast without 'skin to skin contact' cannot be termed as sexual assault as defined under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the Bombay high court has said.
We celebrate January 26 as Republic Day because that's the day on which we adopted the Constitution in 1950. Yet, in the days preceding and following Republic Day 2021, three different courts violated the Constitutional rights of citizens, observes Jyoti Punwani.
The Supreme Court Thursday reserved judgement on appeals against the Bombay High Court verdict which had held that no offence of sexual assault under the POCSO Act is made out if there is no direct 'skin-to-skin' contact between accused and the victim.
The Supreme Court on Thursday quashed the Bombay high court verdict which had held that no offence of sexual assault under the POCSO Act is made out if there is no direct skin-to-skin contact between an accused and victim.
In a judgment passed on January 19, the Bombay high court has said groping a minor's breast without 'skin-to-skin contact' cannot be termed sexual assault as defined under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
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