Panaji: In a first case of deposition of a rape survivor staying abroad via video conferencing from an embassy, the prosecution secured conviction for the accused, plugging the loopholes in establishing evidence before court, starting a new chapter in Goa.Ministry of external affairs, state govt and one embassy in the Gulf coordinated to ensure that the deposition of the survivor was carried out without any problems to give her justice.Criminal justice in rape cases falters due to the absence of survivors during trial due to migration and faced severe criticism. However, the 10-year jail term awarded to a married man charged for rape will provide a boost for prosecution to handle the cases in which survivors are willing to testify via video conferencing when they are not in a position to physically give evidence in court.The survivor was abroad at the time when she was examined as a witness. She was examined through a video conference from an Indian embassy in one of the Gulf countries.A fast-track court has sentenced Taufiq Kotur from Baina to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for raping a woman under the false pretext of marriage. The court also fined him Rs 50,000, which will be paid as compensation to the survivor.“We commend the significant achievement in Goa’s criminal justice system with the first conviction secured through cross-border victim deposition via video conferencing (VC),” the victim assistance unit (VAU) in-charge Emidio Pinho said.
The VAU was the nodal contact point for coordination by the Pocso special court in the case. Pinho said that this case stands out as a pioneering effort made possible through the seamless coordination of multiple stakeholders, whose timely intervention enabled the victim to testify from overseas.Pinho said that the ministry of external affairs, international authorities and legal stakeholders were part of the process to ensure that the survivor’s deposition process was conducted in a sensitive and legally compliant manner.“This landmark achievement sets out a strong precedent for handling similar cases involving survivors residing outside the jurisdiction, ensuring that access to justice remains unhindered by borders,” Pinho said. “We sincerely hope that such inter-agency and international cooperation will continue to strengthen the justice delivery system and uphold the rights and dignity of child survivors.”The case of the prosecution is that the accused had forcible sexual intercourse with the survivor and thereafter promised to marry her and continued sexually abusing her on a false promise to marry and thus committed the offence of rape.The survivor met the accused for the first time in 2015-16 when she was working as a sales girl in a shop.
