The Bombay High Court has acquitted a 25-year-old man and set aside his three-year sentence for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor girl in 2015, ruling that merely saying “I love you” without sexual intent does not amount to sexual harassment. The Nagpur Sessions Court had earlier convicted the man under IPC and POCSO provisions after the 17-year-old complainant alleged he held her hand and declared his love. Justice Urmila Joshi Phalke observed that the phrase “I love you” alone does not indicate sexual intent. “There must be something more to suggest the real intention is sexual in nature,” the court noted, emphasizing the lack of physical contact with sexual intent. Advocate Sonali Khobragade, representing the accused, argued that essential elements of sexual harassment were missing. The court agreed, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish the offence beyond reasonable doubt and that the conviction was legally unsustainable. Karwa Chauth Not Mandatory: Supreme Court Junks ‘Frivolous’ Plea To Make Celebration Compulsory for All Women Including Widows, Divorcees and Those in Live-In Relationships.

Saying ‘I Love You’ Without Any Sexual Intent Is Not Sexual Harassment: Bombay HC

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