In an unusual incident, a 25 year old married man was granted bail by a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court in Mumbai on Wednesday after he said he would marry the 16 year old girl who he raped and impregnated. The court granted bail after they found the accused and the minor were in a consensual relationship. The 16 year old girl has given birth to the man’s child.
Though the man is already married, he has agreed to marry the girl after two years when she turns 18. The Police had opposed his bail petition stating that his first wife has not agreed to his second marriage and that the man had trapped the minor who was unable to understand the consequences of these action.
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This is the second time the accused had applied for bail as his first bail application was rejected. The minor’s mother was the one who had filed the FIR against the accused but after the court’s decision, she submitted an affidavit supporting the man’s release and agreeing to his offer to marry her daughter when she turns 18.
The court observed that since the man’s community permitted him to marry more than once, his appeal to marry the minor was granted.