Courts Have Bounden Duty To Stand By Minor Victims Of Sexual Assault When Their Parents Don't: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has recently observed that Courts have bounden duty to stand by minor victims of sexual assault and uphold their voice when their own parents fail to do so.

“The legal system recognizes the rights of every child, and even in situations where their own parents fail to stand by them or support them, the Court has a bounden duty to uphold their voice, protect their rights, and ensure that justice is served in accordance with the law,” Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said.

The Court was dealing with a POCSO case wherein a minor girl was allegedly sexually assaulted by her own father and an FIR was filed against the mother for failing to report the incident to the authorities.

The mother had earlier filed a rape case against the husband which was later settled between them.

Justice Sharma dismissed the father's bail plea in the POCSO case and rejected his argument that the complaint was rooted in a revengeful motive and that the mother had used her daughter to settle marital discord or extort money from him.

The Court said that mere fact that the parents were in a marital relationship and that their marriage was going through turmoil, resulting in multiple disputes, cannot be a ground to outrightly reject the allegations made by the minor victim.

“The prosecutrix, who is a minor, cannot be deprived of her right as an individual to seek justice merely because her parents are embroiled in litigation. The right of a victim of sexual assault to report cannot be viewed with suspicion solely because the allegations pertain to incest,” the Court said.

It added that each case has to be examined on its own merits and a past settlement between the parties does not grant immunity against fresh allegations of a grave nature.

The Court said that merely because the mother had earlier entered into a compromise with the father and had given no objection to the grant of bail to him cannot lead to the presumption that she was a habitual complainant.

“Victims of sexual assault, particularly minor children, have independent rights under the law, which cannot be negated merely because their parents have chosen to settle disputes among themselves,” the Court said.

Title: NA v. State

Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Del) 406