Bail plea of accused in rape of minor rejected

A local court has rejected the bail application of a 35-year-old man in an alleged rape case of a minor girl.
District Judge Mridula V K Bhatia, in her recent order, rejected the bail application of accused Jagjit Singh Tinna alias Sunny, stating that the "sexual contact was not established out of a love affair."
Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Naina Kamthe in her submission opposed the bail on the ground that the offence was of "serious nature".
Kamthe told the court that Sunny had raped the minor girl on September 15, 2016, at his flat in Bhayander here on a false promise of marrying her and also video-graphed the incident.

He also blackmailed and threatened her that if she discloses the incident to anyone, he would circulate the video clips.
The families of the victim and the accused were known to each other.

He was later arrested by Nayanagar police under IPC sections 376 (rape), 354 (molestation) and 507 (criminal intimidation) and under relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act-2012.
The counsel representing the accused argued that the applicant was operated for kidney stone ailment at the time of the said incident and that it was impossible for him to indulge in sexual intercourse with the victim.

The judge, in the order, stated that the investigating officer (IO) has also placed on record the original birth certificate of the victim which shows her age as 14.
"Consent of a minor is not valid consent under the eyes of law. The IO has placed on record the medical certificate issued by the doctor to show that the accused was capable of sexual intercourse despite the operation," the court observed.
"This is not at all a case of a 'love affair' between a boy and a girl. The offence is serious in nature. The investigation is in progress. The victim is less than 15 years of age. There is every possibility of tampering with the prosecution witnesses. In view thereof, I am inclined to reject the application," the judge said.