Page No.# 1/4 GAHC010079792025 undefined THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : I.A.(Crl.)/536/2025 ROBIN DEKA SON OF SRI KALIA DEKA, RESIDENT OF VILLAGE BEHARBARI, KHETRI, KAMRUP METRO, ASSAM VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR. REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, ASSAM 2:SMTI PABITRI DAS DAUGHTER OF SRI NANDESWAR DEKA RESIDENT OF VILLAGE BORAHU KHETRI KAMRUP METRO ASSA Advocate for the Petitioner : MS. B SARMA, Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, Linked Case : ST.Rev./0/0 SRI ROBIN DEKA SON OF SRI KALIA DEKA RESIDENT OF VILLAGE BEHARBARI KHETRI KAMRUP METRO ASSAM Page No.# 2/4 VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR 2:SMTI PABITRI DAS DAUGHTER OF SRI NANDESWAR DEKA RESIDENT OF VILLAGE BORAHU KHETRI KAMRUP METRO ASSAM ------------ Advocate for : MS BIJITA SARMA Advocate for : appearing for THE STATE OF ASSAM BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE YARENJUNGLA LONGKUMER ORDER Date : 28.05.2025 [M. Choudhury, J] Heard Ms. B. Sarma, learned Legal Aid Counsel for the applicant-appellant and Ms. A. Begum, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the opposite party-respondent no. 1, State of Assam. 2. The instant interlocutory application under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963 is preferred seeking condonation of delay of 154 days in preferring the connected criminal appeal from jail. The connected criminal appeal has been preferred against a Judgment dated 03.10.2024 and an Order on Sentence dated 07.10.2024 passed by the Court of learned Additional Sessions Judge – cum – Special Judge [POCSO], Kamrup [Metro], Guwahati [‘the trial court’, for short] in Sessions [Special] Case no. 46/2023. By the Judgment and Order on Sentence, the learned trial court has convicted the applicant-appellant both under Section 376AB and under Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences [POCSO] Act, 2012. In view of Section 42, POCSO Act, the applicant-appellant has been sentenced to Page No.# 3/4 undergo rigorous imprisonment for 20 [twenty] years and to pay a fine of Rs. 20,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for another one year under Section 6 of the POCSO Act. 3. We have gone through the statements and averments made in the instant interlocutory application or more particularly, Paragraph - 4. From the statements and averments maintained in Paragraph – 4, it transpires that the period of delay has occurred in the process of preferring the accompanying criminal appeal by the applicant-appellant from jail with the assistance of the learned Legal Aid Counsel. 4. Ms. A. Begum, learned Additional Public Prosecutor has fairly submitted that since the applicant-appellant has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 20 [twenty] years, the interest of justice would be better sub-served if the connected appeal is heard on merits after effecting service of notice on the opposite party-respondent no. 2. 5. On having gone through the statements and averments made in this application, we are of the considered view that the applicant-appellant has been able to explain the period of delay of 154 days showing sufficient cause. 6. We are also of the considered view that since the applicant-appellant has been convicted both under Section 376AB and under Section 6, POCSO Act and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 20 [twenty] years, interest of justice will be better sub- served if the connected appeal is heard on merits expeditiously after condoning the period of delay of 154 days. The issuance of notice to the opposite party-respondent no. 2 is dispensed with at this stage as at the stage of hearing the connected criminal appeal, service of notice upon the opposite party-respondent no. 2 is to be ensured and the opposite party-respondent no. 2 would be heard, if the opposite party-respondent no. 2 enters appearance after service of notice. 7. For the afore-said reasons, the instant application is allowed condoning the delay of 154 days in preferring the connected appeal. Page No.# 4/4 8. The Registry to register the connected appeal and thereafter, list the same in the admission column. JUDGE JUDGE Comparing Assistant