SC says sexual violence by parent tears through foundational fabric of familial trust

Sexual, incestuous violence by a parent "tears through" the foundational fabric of familial trust, the Supreme Court observed while upholding a man's conviction for the rape of his minor daughter.

A bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and Sandeep Kumar said the dignity of women was "non-negotiable" and exhorted the legal system to not permit repeated intrusion into that dignity under the "guise of misplaced sympathy" or purported "procedural fairness".

In the order on 4 August, the judges said that justice must not be limited to conviction and must include restitution.

The top court directed Rs 10.50 lakh to be paid as compensation to the survivor as per the state of Himachal Pradesh rules.

"Incestuous sexual violence committed by a parent is a distinct category of offence that tears through the foundational fabric of familial trust and must invite the severest condemnation in both language and sentence. The home, which should be a sanctuary, cannot be permitted to become a site of unspeakable trauma, and the courts must send a clear signal that such offences will be met with an equally unsparing judicial response," the order read.

The apex court said entertaining a plea for leniency in a case of this nature would not merely be misplaced, it would constitute a betrayal of the court’s own constitutional duty to protect the vulnerable.

"When a child is forced to suffer at the hands of her own father, the law must speak in a voice that is resolute and uncompromising. There can be no mitigation in sentencing for crimes that subvert the very notion of family as a space of security," the bench said.

The top court was acting on the appeal of the man against a Himachal Pradesh High Court decision upholding his conviction and sentence under Section 6 (sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of IPC.

To pardon such depravity under any guise would be a travesty of justice and a betrayal of the child protection mandate embedded in our constitutional and statutory framework, the verdict added.