A court has found the accused guilty of using criminal force and making unwanted physical contact with sexual intent. The trial, which spanned two months, concluded with the dismissal of the defense’s arguments. This ruling highlights the judicial system’s stance on sexual offenses and the legal ramifications of such actions.
The case arose from an incident on Sept 17, 2025, at a mall in Borivli (West). The victim, who was working as a sales girl at the mall, told the court that around 6 pm she was on duty and was walking towards billing counter number 6 after taking a bottle of cold drink. The court recorded that the victim lodged the FIR immediately on Sept 17, 2025. The chargesheet was filed on Nov 11, 2025, and charges were framed on July 4, 2026.
Additional Sessions Judge P A Sane said, “The evidence of the victim is convincing and is not disbelievable. After the victim asked the man to go ahead, he went away briefly and returned, according to the prosecution. There is nothing coming on record as to why the victim will depose against the accused. So there is no possibility that she would falsely involve the accused in this case. This is one of the few convictions since BNHS replaced IPC. At that time, a man wearing a pink shirt approached and asked her where the washroom was. She pointed towards the direction, but the man repeatedly asked her to show him the washroom. The victim deposed that the accused came from behind, knocked against her, asked her to take him to the washroom, and when she refused and proceeded towards the billing counter, he forcibly kissed her, caused her to fall on the ground, and kissed her again. Staff members and people present in the mall caught him. The police were called, and the accused was taken into custody the same day. During investigations, police prepared the spot panchnama, arrested the accused, recorded witness statements, and collected CCTV footage from the mall.
Moreover, it is coming on record that she did not know the accused before the incident.
The judge sentenced Armulla to one year’s RI and a fine of Rs 1,000 for the offence under Section 74, and one year’s simple imprisonment with a fine of Rs 500 for the offence under Section 75. The court directed that Rs 1,000 from the fine amount be paid to the victim, whose identity is being withheld, and the remaining amount be credited to the govt.
Mumbai: Ruling that a natural reaction to a fall does not involve kissing the victim, a sessions court convicted and sentenced to one year’s rigorous imprisonment (RI) a 34-year-old cleaner who claimed he “accidentally slipped and fell” onto a saleswoman at a Borivli (W) mall before forcibly kissing her twice last year. The court noted that her testimony was supported by an eyewitness, who said he was present in the mall and saw the accused kiss the victim, make her fall, and kiss her again before being caught. “Even for the sake of argument, it is considered that if a person slipped and fell on another person, the natural reaction would be different from the person kissing the person on whom he fell,” the judge said.
Both sentences will run concurrently. The prosecution examined four witnesses: the victim, an eyewitness working in the mall, the investigating officer, and a mall employee connected with the CCTV footage. The victim identified Armulla in court and stated that he was the person who had committed the act. The judge accepted that the electronic evidence had weaknesses but held that the oral evidence of the victim and the eyewitness was sufficient and trustworthy.