Maharashtra: Thane court acquits couple in Atrocities Act case

A special court in Maharashtras Thane district has acquitted a couple accused of assault and hurling casteist slurs holding that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt reported news agency PTIAdditional Sessions Judge A S Bhagwat of the special court handling cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act often referred to as the Atrocities Act or SCST Act also pointed to inconsistencies in the evidence presentedA copy of the acquittal order of September 10 was made available on FridayAccording to the prosecution on December 11 2020 the accused tried to encroach upon the complainants land at the Kavesar area in Thane city The couple allegedly made casteist remarks assaulted the complainants mother and threatened to kill him reported PTIHowever the court noted material discrepancies in witness testimoniesThere is no corroboration from the prosecution witness about the abuses allegedly hurled She only deposed that the accused said to them xxx which cannot be termed as abuse the court saidIt raised doubts over the testimony of the prosecution witness concerning the claim of assaultThe judge also highlighted that all the witnesses were related to the complainant and no independent witness was examined reported PTIAcquitting the couple the judge said The prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt against the accused for the alleged offencesThane court acquits man accused of raping assaulting womanIn another case a court in Maharashtras Thane district acquitted a 21yearold man accused of raping a woman on the promise of marriage in 2016 citing inconsistencies in her testimony and lack of corroborating evidence reported PTIAdditional Sessions Judge D S Deshmukh acquitted Vijay Dinesh Mishra who was booked on the charges of rape assault cheating and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code reported PTIA copy of the order passed on September 2 was made available on MondayAs per the case registered in October 2016 the accused allegedly repeatedly raped the complainant under the pretext of marriage physically assaulted her and cheated her of Rs 64 lakhThe prosecution examined four witnesses including the complainant and her father during the sevenyear trialThe judge noted a contradiction in the womans testimony in court and her initial FIRThe court pointed out that the long delay in reporting the alleged assaults which began in January 2016 suggested a consensual relationshipHer silence creates doubt about her version that she was repeatedly raped by the accused it statedA chemical analysis report found human blood on the womans clothes but the prosecution failed to provide evidence linking the blood to the accused the court noted reported PTIThe defence argued that the complaint against the accused was lodged due to a financial disputeThe court also noted that the woman admitted to having quarrelled with the accused and their families leading to the filing of crosscomplaintsThe judge also pointed out that the woman and her father had admitted to a settlement deed and receiving money from the accused reported PTIThe court concluded that the prosecution had failed to prove the accuseds guilt beyond a reasonable doubtWith inputs from PTI