PANAJI
A Fast Track Special Court in Panaji has rejected the bail application of a 50-year-old man accused of repeatedly raping an 80-year-old woman. The Court refused the argument that he was mentally unstable at the time of the offence.
In the order pronounced on Tuesday, FTSC (POCSO) Presiding Officer Pooja Kavlekar held that no medical evidence had been produced to substantiate the claim of mental illness and that the plea could not be considered at this stage.
"I do not find any medical evidence produced in the charge sheet that would indicate that the accused is of unsound mind and that is the reason why he indulges in voyeurism. When the accused was medically examined before sending him to custody, no doctor reported that he showed signs of mental illness. In any case, this is a question of fact and will have to be determined at the time of trial, therefore, no case is made out to release the accused on the ground of mental illness," reads the order.
The prosecution alleged that in June 2025, the accused from Thivim entered the house of the elderly woman and subjected her to forceful sexual assault over three consecutive days. The court also took note of a prior complaint filed in 2022 by a local woman alleging that the accused had stood nude in his house and made lewd gestures.
Counsel for the accused argued that his conduct indicated mental instability and contended that contradictions in the victim’s statements weakened the prosecution’s case. To this, the court said that at the stage of considering bail, a meticulous examination of evidence was not permissible.
Calling the offence “extremely heinous” and noting that it was allegedly committed repeatedly against a “helpless senior citizen lady living alone”, the court said the matter was still at the preliminary stage and dismissed the bail plea.
