Accused of sexually assaulting his daughter, a man from Assam temporarily released from jail, proceeds to murder the woman who made the accusation.
In the aftermath of securing bail, a 30-year-old man from Assam brutally murdered a woman who had bravely stepped forward as a witness in a POCSO Act case against him. The victim, a 40-year-old woman, paid the tragic price for her courageous decision to speak out and bring him to justice for sexually assaulting her minor daughter two years prior.
The man, identified as Mukha Basumatry, executed this heinous act of revenge on Tuesday. He allegedly tracked down the woman at her Hobila residence and brutally beat her to death using a wooden stick. The woman's husband was not present at the time of the horrific incident.
Local residents intervened and assisted the police in apprehending Mukha after the murder.
Two years ago, Mukha was charged and convicted by a lower court for violating the POCSO Act. He was imprisoned for his crimes until the Gauhati High Court granted him bail two months prior to this shocking event.
Child-friendly legal procedures, as mandated by the POCSO Act, aim to protect victims from further trauma during trials. Despite these protections, tragic incidents like this remind us of the ongoing need for comprehensive measures to safeguard witnesses.
The POCSO Act ensures confidentiality for child victims and mandates statements to be recorded under safe conditions. Courts are also expected to treat child witnesses as protected ones, prohibiting direct cross-examination to safeguard their well-being.
While the POCSO Act itself does not codify specific post-bail protections, courts often rely on other legal frameworks like the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to impose bail conditions and secure the safety of witnesses. Conditions may include restrictions on contacting or intimidating witnesses.
Section 21 of the POCSO Act also mandates mandatory reporting of sexual offenses against children. This helps in preventing potential intimidation or influence on witnesses.
Recent legal developments have reinforced the importance of protecting child victims throughout the legal process. Courts have emphasized swift action against those failing to report offenses and have enforced strict bail conditions to hinder witness tampering or intimidation.
- Mukha Basumatry, the man who was released on bail after being accused of violating the POCSO Act, was sentenced to prison again in 2024, following his brutal murder of a woman who had bravely testified against him.
- This brutal act of revenge was committed on Tuesday, and Mukha allegedly used a wooden stick to beat the victim, a 40-year-old woman, to death at her Hobila residence.
- Despite the child-friendly legal procedures mandated by the POCSO Act to safeguard witnesses, tragic incidents like this during the general news, crime-and-justice, and politics sections of war-and-conflicts, remind us of the ongoing need for comprehensive measures to protect witnesses.
- As the case against Mukha continues to unfold, it is essential to reevaluate and refine the legal system's post-bail protections for witnesses to prevent future incidents and ensure justice is served.
