India News | Rape Survivor Can't Be Compelled to Baby's DNA Testing for Determining Paternity: Allahabad HC

Lucknow, Dec 9 (PTI) The Allahabad High Court on Thursday held that a rape survivor cannot be compelled to allow her baby to undergo DNA test for determining paternity.

The Lucknow bench set aside an order of a POCSO court which had directed for DNA test of the baby on the plea of the minor accused in the rape case.

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Justice Sangeeta Chandra passed the verdict, allowing the revision plea of the survivor's mother.

In her order, Justice Chandra observed, "It is apparent that the POCSO judge misdirected his energies."

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"The question before the POCSO judge was to determine as to whether the charge sheeted accused committed rape on the survivor and not to determine who was the father of the baby born to the survivor after the incident," she said.

The survivor's mother had lodged an FIR with Kotwali police station in Sultanpur on December 17, 2017 that her minor daughter was raped. After probe, the police filed a charge sheet against a minor for rape and also booked some other accused under IPC and POCSO Act.

During trial before Juvenile Justice Board (JJB), the minor accused moved an application for DNA test of the baby of the rape survivor but the JJB rejected the plea on March 25 this year, saying it could be raised at defence stage only.

Against the JJB's order, the minor accused filed an appeal before the POCSO court which allowed his plea on June 25 and directed DNA test of the baby.

The survivor's mother approached the high court filing a revision petition against this order.

Allowing the revision plea, the high court also restrained the JJB to entertain any plea of DNA test to be raised by the minor accused at defence stage.

In its plea, the revisionist had pleaded that the POCSO court should have considered as to what would happen on ordering DNA test and whether it would have effect of branding the baby as a "bastard" and the rape survivor as an "unchaste woman".

But the POCSO judge passed the order without examining the consequences, whereas it is mandatory in view of several apex court verdicts, the plea said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)