PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has turned down the bail plea of a juvenile person suspected of sexually abusing a minor boy in Lower Dir district.

Justice Dr Khurshid Iqbal of a single-member bench declared that as the records showed that trial in the case was underway with the charge being framed against the petitioner, so the relevant court should conclude the trial in the next one month.

He observed that the report of the medical examination of the alleged assault victim as well as the alleged site plan prima facie connected the petitioner with the commission of the offence.

The court also observed that the offence itself was heinous in nature and the charge that the petitioner had victimised a three-year-old child was an aggravating factor in the circumstances of the case.

It added that the punishment for the offence in hand was covered by the prohibitory clause of Section 497 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

The FIR of the alleged sex crime was registered at the Asbanr Police Station in Lower Dir district, on Oct 6, 2022, under Section 377-B (punishment for sexual abuse) of Pakistan Penal Code and Section 53 (sexual abuse) of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Child Protection and Welfare Act.

The complainant in the case was the child’s father, who claimed that his three-year-old son was taken away from outside his house by the accused to a deserted house before being sexually abused.

The petitioner’s counsel contended that there was no independent witness to the alleged offence and that his client was falsely implicated in the case.

He contended that the petitioner was a juvenile and his birth certificate available on records showed that he was around 16 years of age.

However, the bench observed that the petitioner’s medical examination reflected that he was capable of performing the sex crime.

The bench observed that the petitioner had attained sufficient maturity.

It added that the medical examination of the boy tentatively supported the allegations against the petitioner and that happened to be a significant aspect for consideration of his release on bail.

Assistant advocate general Saeed Ahmad and counsel for the complainant Qayyum Khan contended that the petitioner was directly named in the FIR and he did not deserve to be set free on bail for committing a heinous crime.

Published in Dawn, january 8th, 2023