A special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court in Mumbai granted bail to a 25-year-old man, arrested on charges of sexual assault and impregnating a 16-year-old after he told the court he was willing to marry the minor.
The accused was granted bail on Wednesday, January 27, after the court noted he was ‘willing’ to marry the minor, despite being already married, and found out that the relationship between the two was ‘consensual’.
The minor’s mother, who had initially lodged an FIR against the accused, submitted an affidavit in the court supporting his release, as she wanted him to marry her daughter, reported India Today.
The accused had filed a bail application for the second time as his plea to be set free was earlier rejected by the court. However, the police opposed the bail plea saying that there was no evidence to show that the man’s first wife had consented to his second marriage.
They alleged that the minor was unable to understand the consequences, and the accused was taking undue advantage of the situation by offering to marry her. The advocate of the 25-year-old, told the court that a man was allowed to marry more than once in the community he belonged to.
