Bengaluru: A child survivor shouldn’t be put through cross-examination repeatedly, Karnataka high court has observed, saying processes must never become another wound inflicted on the child in pursuit of justice.
In a judgement passed Oct 16, the court quashed an order passed by a trial court in Bengaluru to allow further cross-examination of the survivor, now 12 years old.
The child would be put to “psychological distress”, the judge observed, quashing the trial court’s order. Justice Nagaprasanna pointed out HC cannot ignore the trauma a child would undergo if there was a re-run of all that had happened on the date of the alleged incident.
A Pocso case was registered in 2022 based on a complaint by the mother of the girl, who was eight then. In March 2024, the accused filed an application seeking further cross-examination with certain videos and voice messages. The mother challenged the order before the high court, arguing the survivor had already been cross-examined several times in 2023 and the trial court order was against Supreme Court judgements.
Police conducted an investigation and filed a chargesheet. The trial court allowed the application.