Patna: Patna high court has held that an out-of-court compromise or monetary settlement between an accused and the family of a minor victim of child abuse or rape survivor cannot be used to dilute criminal charges under the Posco Act.A single bench of Justice Purnendu Singh made the observation while rejecting the anticipatory bail plea of an accused booked under the Pocso Act. The order was passed on Aug 3 and it came in the public domain on Wednesday.Justice Singh observed that an out-of-court compromise through mediation or a monetary settlement cannot dilute the gravity of offences under the Pocso Act.The case arose from an FIR registered in Araria. A minor survivor had accused the 19-year-old petitioner of luring her into sexual acts on the false promise of marriage.During the investigation, the accused and the survivor entered into a written compromise through a high court-referred mediation process. Under the mediation agreement, the accused agreed to pay Rs5.5 lakh to the survivor’s family in instalments in return for favourable court statements.Justice Singh observed that parents or guardians have no legal authority to negotiate or compromise serious criminal acts committed against a child.
