Guwahati, May 20: The High Court of Meghalaya on May 18 upheld the ten-year prison sentence of a man convicted of repeatedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl, in a case where the crime came to light not through a police complaint but through a Khasi tribal belief that lightning striking a house twice signals incest within the family.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice W. Diengdoh dismissed the appeal filed by Banteilang Sohshang, affirming his conviction under Sections 5(l)(n)/6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, and a fine of ₹30,000 imposed by the Special POCSO Court, West Khasi Hills District, Nongstoin, in November 2021.
The survivor, who was between 16 and 17 years old at the time, had been assaulted repeatedly between March and July 2016 while staying at her aunt’s house, where the appellant also resided. She did not report the assaults as the accused had threatened to kill her.
The matter surfaced in May 2016 when lightning struck the appellant’s house twice. Acting on the Khasi customary belief that such an event signals moral transgression within the household, the appellant’s mother confronted her family. The appellant confessed to having sexually assaulted the survivor. His mother then informed the survivor’s aunt, who informed her mother. A clan meeting was held but yielded no resolution, following which an FIR was registered.
The appellant’s defence of a consensual relationship was rejected by the court. “The consent given by a minor girl is immaterial,” the bench held, noting that the survivor had categorically stated the assaults were forced and that her testimony went unchallenged in cross-examination.
The court further noted that the appellant had not pleaded consent in his own statement under Section 313 CrPC. His extra-judicial confession to his mother and cousin, the bench said, was corroborated by medical evidence from Dr W.R. Nongkhlaw of Nongstoin Civil Hospital and the consistent testimony of multiple witnesses — including the appellant’s own mother, who appeared as a prosecution witness.
The court also upheld the trial court’s direction for ₹50,000 in compensation to the survivor for rehabilitation and mental health treatment, to be paid by the Meghalaya State Legal Services Authority. The District Legal Services Authority, West Khasi Hills, has been directed to file a compliance report within six weeks. The matter will be taken up again on June 18, 2026.
