Page No.# 1/3 GAHC010092212025 undefined THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : I.A.(Crl.)/539/2025 KHADEM ALI S/O. MONOWAR HUSSAIN, VILL.- BORO BHADEYAGURI, P/O. BHADEYAGURI, P/S. KOKRAJHAR, DIST. KOKRAJHAR, ASSAM, PIN-783360. VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR REP BY THE PP ASSAM 2:ALI HUSSAIN S/O. LT. JAHER ALI VILL. BORO BHADEYAGURI P/O. BHADEYAGURI P/S. KOKRAJHAR DIST. KOKRAJHAR ASSAM PIN-783360 Advocate for the Petitioner : T UDDIN, MR M RAHMAN,MR. S AHMED Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, Linked Case : ST.Rev./0/0 KHADEM ALI KOKRAJHAR Page No.# 2/3 VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR REP BY THE PP ASSAM ------------ Advocate for : TAHEZ UDDIN Advocate for : appearing for THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE YARENJUNGLA LONGKUMER ORDER Date : 28.05.2025 [M. Choudhury, J] Heard Mr. T. Uddin, 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 163 days in preferring the connected criminal appeal from jail. The connected criminal appeal has been preferred against a Judgment and Order 06.09.2024 passed by the Court of Special Judge [POCSO], Kokrajhar [‘the trial court’, for short] in Special Case no. 57/2019. By the Judgment and Order 06.09.2024, the learned trial court has convicted the applicant-appellant under Section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences [POCSO] Act, 2012 to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 15 [fifteen] years and to pay a fine of Rs. 10,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for another three months. 3. We have gone through the statements and averments made in the instant interlocutory application. 4. Ms. A. Begum, learned Additional Public Prosecutor has fairly submitted that since the Page No.# 3/3 applicant-appellant has been sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 15 [fifteen] 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 163 days showing sufficient cause. 6. We are also of the considered view that since the applicant-appellant has been convicted both under Section 6, POCSO Act and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 15 [fifteen] 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 163 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 163 days in preferring the connected appeal. 8. The Registry to register the connected appeal and thereafter, list the same in the admission column. JUDGE JUDGE Comparing Assistant