Assam's Padma awardee accused of sexually abusing minor

A Padma awardee of Assam, accused of sexually abusing a minor girl he was fostering, has obtained an interim anticipatory bail from Gauhati High Court to evade arrest after a case was registered against him.

The vacation bench of Justice Arun Dev Choudhury granted the anticipatory bail to the accused, who prayed that the FIR was filed to malign his reputation and the complaint did not have any specific statement of the victim.

The court, however, noted in its order passed on December 28 that the case is 'serious' in nature as it includes offences under the POCSO Act and sought the case dairy from the police on January 7.

As per the allegation, the Child Welfare Committee (CWC), Lakhimpur, had requested the accused to provide a foster home to two girls, and he agreed to have the two girls placed under his and his wife's care.

The girls had started living with his family from September 2020.

As per the accused's senior counsellor A M Bora, a dispute arose between his client and the chairman, CWC, Lakhimpur, and accordingly, the accused was asked to produce the girls on or before October 28, 2021.

The girls were brought before the CWC on October 28 and since then they are under the custody of the committee.

The deed of foster care was cancelled by the CWC on December 17 on the ground that none of the girls is willing to go back to her foster parents.

The accused's counsellor contended before the court that the ground of cancellation nowhere reflected any sexual abuse to the alleged victim and even in the report, which has been treated as FIR, there is no specific statement of the victim alleging any sexual harassment, except a statement that the "foster father used to hold her hand to bad activities".

Bora maintained that the allegation was a result of a conflict between his client and the CWC chairman, and appealed for an interim protection against arrest, "taking note of the social status of the petitioner".

The additional public prosecutor in the case, S Zahan, objected to the petition for interim bail, stating that social status should not be a consideration in case of such allegations.

The court, while allowing interim anticipatory bail, set few conditions on the accused, one of which mandates no contact with the alleged victim via any medium.

The court also directed the accused to appear before the officer in-charge of North Lakhimpur police station, where the FIR was registered, within seven days from the date of the order and before the investigating officer of the case as and when called.