KOCHI: The High Court has ruled that the statement of the victim should not be disbelieved because she disclosed that she had been sexually abused by her father since childhood. The High Court clarified this in an appeal filed by the father, who was sentenced to life imprisonment at Poojappura Central Jail in the case of assaulting his daughter. The division bench upheld the molestation charge against the father but amended the sentence to 20 years. The appeal was heard by a bench comprising Justices P B Suresh Kumar and C S Sudha.

The girl revealed her father's sexual abuse only after she became an adult. Later, the girl was diagnosed with AIDS. The defendant's contention was that it was unbelievable that she came forward with a complaint about childhood sexual abuse years later and that there was ambiguity in her testimony. However, these arguments were rejected by the Division Bench. Due to many circumstances, the girl may not have disclosed the abuse she faced during her childhood. There is no need to disbelieve just because she complained after years. This is evaluated by considering the circumstances of the case and other evidence. The prosecution pointed out that she did not even complain to her mother because her father had threatened to kill her. The High Court also rejected the father's contention that she was making such allegations out of anger over his daughter's severe scolding during her childhood for not going to school. The High Court also opined that no daughter would make such serious allegations against her father for such a trivial reason. After examining the evidence, including the statement, the Division Bench upheld the charges levelled against the accused by the trial court. However, the sentence was amended, taking into account the social background of the accused.