NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has held that the accused in sexual assault cases cannot insist on corroborative evidence. "Corroboration is not the sine qua non for conviction in rape cases," observed a two-judge Bench comprising Justices Arijit Pasayat and S. H. Kapadia.

In the Indian context, refusal to act on the testimony of the victim, in the absence of corroboration as a rule, would add insult to injury. "A girl or woman in the tradition-bound, non-permissive society would be extremely reluctant even to admit that any incident which is likely to reflect on her chastity has ever occurred. She would be conscious of the danger of being ostracised by society and when in the face of these factors the crime is brought to light, there is an in-built assurance that the charge is genuine rather than fabricated."

In the instant case of criminal assault on an eight-year-old girl, the trial court found the accused guilty of rape under Sec. 376(2) of the Indian Penal Code and under the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. It sentenced the accused to life imprisonment and asked the Rajasthan Government to pay the victim a compensation of Rs. 50,000. The Rajasthan High Court upheld the decision.

SC/ST Act will not apply

The Supreme Court Bench upheld the contention by the accused that the rape was committed not because the victim belonged to an SC and hence the Act would not apply in this case. The Bench reduced the punishment to 10-year imprisonment.

It directed the Rajasthan Government to pay the compensation within eight weeks.

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