Fri Mar 07 22:03:00 UTC 2025: ## Delhi High Court Narrows Definition of Aggravated Sexual Assault Under POCSO Act
**New Delhi, March 8, 2025** – The Delhi High Court has ruled that touching a minor girl’s lips and sleeping beside her, without sexually motivated advances, does not constitute “aggravated sexual assault” under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. While acknowledging the actions violated the girl’s dignity and modesty, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma stated the acts lacked the necessary “overt or inferred sexual intent” required for conviction under Section 10 of the POCSO Act.
The case involved the uncle of a minor girl who was accused under both Section 10 of the POCSO Act and Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for assault or criminal force with intent to outrage modesty. The court discharged the uncle from the POCSO charges but upheld the charges under Section 354 of the IPC.
The court cited Supreme Court precedents, emphasizing that “modesty,” in the context of Section 354, must be interpreted in light of a woman or girl’s dignity and bodily autonomy. However, the judge noted the absence of any indication of sexual intent in the victim’s statements to the magistrate, police, and Child Welfare Committee. The girl, who lives in a childcare institution after being abandoned by her mother, was visiting family when the incident occurred.
The court clarified that even minimal physical contact, if intended to outrage modesty, is sufficient for prosecution under Section 354 of the IPC. The ruling highlights the importance of demonstrating sexual intent in cases involving allegations under the POCSO Act.
First Piper 