Testimony of a victim of sexual assault has to be treated at par with the testimony of an injured witness

The law with regard to the appreciation of the testimony of a prosecutrix is well-settled. In State of Maharashtra Vs. Chandraprakash Kewalchand Jain, it was held that the testimony of a victim of sexual assault has to be treated at par with the testimony of an injured witness.

In State of Uttar Pradesh Vs. Pappu alias Yunus and Another, the Supreme Court held that even in a case where it is shown that the prosecutrix is a girl of easy virtue or a girl habituated to sexual intercourse, it may not be a ground to absolve the accused from the charge of rape.

In Mahila Vinod Kumari Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh, the Supreme Court held that so far as sexual offences are concerned, sanctity is attached to the statement of the victim. It was observed that evidenceEvidence All the means by which a matter of fact, the truth of which is submitted for investigation, is established or disproved. Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Adhiniyam 2023 of the prosecutrix alone is sufficient for the purpose of conviction if it is found to be reliable, cogent and credible.

The anonymity of the victim:

That in Delhi Domestic Working Women’s Forum Vs. Union of IndiaIndia Bharat Varsha (Jambu Dvipa) is the name of this land mass. The people of this land are Sanatan Dharmin and they always defeated invaders. Indra (10000 yrs) was the oldest deified King of this land. Manu's jurisprudence enlitened this land. Vedas have been the civilizational literature of this land. Guiding principles of this land are : सत्यं वद । धर्मं चर । स्वाध्यायान्मा प्रमदः । Read more (UOI) and Others, , the three Judges Bench of the Supreme Court while issuing guidelines for protection of the victims of sexual assault directed that in rape trials anonymity of the victim must be maintained. These directions were reiterated in several subsequent decisions including State of Punjab Vs. Gurmit Singh and Others, and S. Ramakrishna Vs. The State rep. by the Public Prosecutor, High Court of A.P. Hyderabad, . This Court notices that in the number of cases as also, in this case, the directions issued by the Supreme Court are not being adhered to by the Trial Courts. The prosecutrix’s name has been mentioned in the judgmentJudgment The statement given by the Judge on the grounds of a decree or order - CPC 2(9). It contains a concise statement of the case, points for determination, the decision thereon, and the reasons for such decision - Order 20 Rule 4(2).  Section 354 of CrPC requires that every judgment shall contain points for determination, the decision thereon and the reasons for the decision. Indian Supreme Court Decisions > Law declared by Supreme Court to be binding on all courts (Art 141 Indian Constitution) Civil and judicial authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court (Art 144) Supreme Court Network On Judiciary – Portal > Denning: “Judges do not speak, as do actors, to please. They do not speak, as do advocates, to persuade. They do not speak, as do historians, to recount the past. They speak to give Judgment. And in their judgments, you will find passages, which are worthy to rank with the greatest literature….” Law Points on Judgment Writing > The judge must write to provide an easy-to-understand analysis of the issues of law and fact which arise for decision. Judgments are primarily meant for those whose cases are decided by judges (State Bank of India and Another Vs Ajay Kumar Sood SC 2022), at several places. We would like to emphasise that in order to save any embarrassment to the victim of sexual assault the Trial Courts have to maintain the anonymity of the victim by not disclosing her name, address or other particulars. The Registrar General of this Court is directed to issue a Circular that the direction of the Supreme Court must be complied with in letter and spirit.