PANAJI
The High Court of Bombay at Goa has upheld the conviction of 86-year-old Aldona resident Martin Soares for raping and sexually assaulting a minor girl, dismissing his appeal and directing that he immediately surrender to undergo the 10-year rigorous imprisonment handed down by the Children’s Court.
Soares had moved the High Court challenging the 2018 judgment of the Children’s Court, which had convicted him of the offence. The trial court had also imposed fines along with default imprisonment.
The High Court found no merit in the appeal, noting that the prosecution’s case had been firmly established. “This Court is of the opinion that the trial Court has rightly convicted the Appellant of the offences for which he was charged for as the same is duly proved beyond reasonable doubt by cogent evidence. The trial court has evaluated and appreciated the entire evidence in an absolute apropos manner and arrived at the only possible conclusion i.e. the guilt of the accused. The impugned judgment does not suffer from any illegality, infirmity or irregularity whatsoever warranting interference by this Court,” the Bench of Justice Shreeram Shirsat observed.
The Bench also declined to consider the convict’s age as a mitigating factor. While noting that the appellant is currently aged 83 years, it also emphasised that the age and trauma of the victim could not be ignored.
“The Appeal stands dismissed and the conviction of the Appellant is upheld. The Appellant shall forthwith surrender to serve his sentence. Bail bond stands cancelled,” the order stated.
The case dates back to May 15, 2012 based on a complaint lodged by the victim’s mother. The complaint recorded that the child first confided in family friends regarding the assault and later repeated the details to her parents, Childline counsellors and the police.
Following the investigation, the trial court framed charges and examined ten prosecution witnesses, including the child (PW1), her mother (PW2), her friend (PW3) and medical officers. The victim’s clear and detailed testimony formed the core of the prosecution’s case.
After the High Court upheld the conviction, defence counsel Annelise Fernandes sought a six-week stay on the order, pointing out that the appellant had been on bail throughout the trial and appeal proceedings. The Court rejected the plea.
“Upon considering the submissions advanced by the Counsel for the Appellant and having regard to the nature of the offence and the findings recorded in the impugned judgment, this Court is not inclined to grant any stay of the order. The request for stay is, therefore, rejected,” it said.
