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The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that “penetration to any extent” is sufficient to constitute penetrative sexual assault under Section 3 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act), even in the absence of physical injuries on the child.

The Court made the observation while dismissing an appeal filed by Shyam Veer against his conviction under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and upholding the 20-year minimum sentence imposed for aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a child below 12 years of age.

A Division Bench of Justice Vivek Singh Thakur and Justice Ranjan Sharma remarked that: “Therefore, the act of the appellant by rubbing or touching his penis at the mouth of anus or slightest attempt to insert, amounts to penetrative sexual assault even in absence of any injury in the anus, because Section 3(1) provides that penetration to any extent…”

Background:

The case arose from an incident dated 27 April 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, when the appellant and the victim's family were residing as tenants in the same building in Shimla district.

The prosecution alleged that the appellant took the child, who was below eight years of age, into his room and subjected him to penetrative sexual assault. The incident was reported to the police shortly thereafter, following which the victim was medically examined and his statement was recorded under Section 164 CrPC. 

The Trial Court convicted the appellant under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and Section 377 IPC, sentencing him to 20 years' rigorous imprisonment under Section 6 and 10 years under Section 377 IPC, with the sentences to run concurrently. The appellant thereafter challenged the conviction and sentence before the High Court.

The High Court found that the prosecution case was supported by the consistent testimony of the victim, neighbours and other witnesses, as well as the medical and forensic evidence. The Court noted that semen was detected on the victim's pants and the appellant's underwear, while the DNA profile from the victim's pants matched that of the appellant. 

The Court rejected the appellant's contention that the absence of injuries on the child disproved penetration. It held that under Section 3 of the POCSO Act, penetration to any extent is sufficient to constitute penetrative sexual assault, including touching the anus with the penis or the slightest attempt to insert it. 

Since the victim was below 12 years of age, the Court held that the offence constituted aggravated penetrative sexual assault under Section 5(m), attracting Section 6 of the POCSO Act. It further held that the Trial Court had correctly imposed the minimum prescribed sentence of 20 years' rigorous imprisonment.

Accordingly, the appeal was dismissed and the conviction and sentence were affirmed.

Case Name: Shyam Veer v/s State of H.P.

Case No.: Criminal Appeal No.347 of 2022

Date of Decision: 16.09.2026

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