The Sikkim High Court has upheld the conviction of a 42-year-old man for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old schoolgirl and abetting her suicide, holding that the prosecution had established an unbroken chain of evidence proving that his actions drove the victim to take her own life.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice A Muhamed Mustaque and Justice Bhaskar Raj Pradhan on Friday dismissed the appeal filed by convict Chewang Sherpa against his 2023 conviction under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), noting that the prosecution’s case was definitive, entirely excluding any reasonable hypothesis of innocence.
The case arose from an incident on August 20, 2021, during the Covid-19 lockdown. The victim, then a Class XII student, had gone to school to submit examination papers. On her way home, she accepted a ride from the accused, who belonged to her village. According to the prosecution, the accused sexually assaulted her after the two took shelter from heavy rain near a monastery. The victim later returned home, wrote a detailed account of the assault in her school notebook, and died by suicide.
Rejecting the appellant’s challenge to the investigation and the authenticity of the suicide note, the High Court held that the note constituted a valid dying declaration under Section 32 of the Indian Evidence Act.
It observed that the victim found the acts of the convict, including the sexual assault, so despicable, humiliating, deplorable and intolerable that she felt a deep sense of defilement and was unable to face anyone, driving her to commit suicide.
While affirming the conviction, the Bench modified the sentence by setting aside the separate three-year imprisonment imposed under Section 354A of IPC for sexual harassment. Referring to Section 42 of the POCSO Act and Section 71 of IPC, the Court held that where the same act attracts punishment under multiple laws, only the more severe punishment should apply. It accordingly directed that the remaining sentences would run concurrently.
The Bench also expressed serious concern over the State’s prison rehabilitation system, noting that Sherpa had previously been convicted under Section 458 of the IPC.
The Court expressed serious concern over how effectively the State Central Prison at Rongyek rehabilitates inmates, pointing out that the accused had reoffended by committing a crime far more heinous than his previous offence.
In a significant part of the judgment, the High Court urged the State to prioritise children’s mental health, particularly that of young girls facing trauma. Referring to the contents of the victim’s suicide note, the Bench said it was deeply disturbed by her emotional distress and called for a structured, scientific approach to mental health interventions.
The Court urged the State to focus on the mental health of children across both rural and urban areas. It called for concrete actions and a structured plan, emphasising that a child’s healthy mind is vital for the growth of the state and the country. Additionally, the Bench demanded a scientific evaluation of current mental health programs to ensure they truly meet children’s needs.
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