On 18th March 2025, Surat POCSO Court sentenced Ashad Altaf Virani to rigorous imprisonment for 20 years and imposed a fine of Rs 1,00,000 on him for raping a minor Hindu girl. Ashad was booked by Vesu Police in Surat, Gujarat, under Sections 376(2)(N), 450, 465, 468, 471, and 120(b) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 4, 6, and 17 of the POCSO Act on 19th September 2023, based on the complaint of the victim’s mother. He was arrested on 22nd September 2023. At the time of his arrest, Ashad was 19 years old. Two other accused, Rudra Chandresh Patel and Pravin Netrapalsing Chaudhary, booked under the same provisions, were acquitted by the court.
The Special Fast Track Court (POCSO) was presided by Justice Shakuntala Naresh Solanki. DV Dave was the Public Prosecutor. Ashad was represented by advocate KP Reshamwala, Rudra by advocate MH Chaudhary and Pravin by advocate SS Katyare.
Background of the case
On 19th September 2023, the victim’s mother approached Vesu Police Station to file a complaint against Ashad for raping her minor daughter, who was 17 years old at the time of the incident. In her complaint, the victim’s mother said that she noticed her daughter was talking to someone on the phone and sending messages from time to time. She became suspicious and took her phone to check. The mother found some nude photographs of her daughter with a boy.
When enquired, the victim revealed that around six or seven months earlier, her friend Aryan Mehta had introduced her to a young man, Ashad Altaf Virani. He used to take her to parties from time to time at different places. The victim admitted that she was having a love affair with him. Ashad had taken her to the Weekend Home hotel at Dumas Road and also to his house, where they had sexual intercourse.
As the girl was a minor, the police filed a case under the POCSO Act and other relevant sections of the IPC. Rudra and Pravin were also booked by the police during the course of the investigation as they had allegedly modified the victim’s Aadhaar card so that she could submit it at the reception of the hotel where Ashad had taken her. Rudra and Pravin were arrested by the police on 30th September 2023.
Victim’s mother’s statement in court
In her statement in the court, the victim’s mother deposed that on 18th or 19th September, she checked her daughter’s mobile phone and saw nude photographs of the victim and Ashad. Aryan, a common friend of the victim and Ashad, was the key person who arranged the first meeting between the two.
The victim’s mother called Aryan to her home. Aryan told the mother that he was aware of the relationship between the victim and Ashad. Aryan would take her from the house and drop her off with Ashad while the mother was under the impression that the victim was going to Aryan’s house for skateboarding. The mother then called Ashad, who apologised to her. After that, she went to the police station and filed a complaint against the accused.
Notably, court documents revealed that after that day, Aryan went to London and did not turn up for a statement in the court.
After filing the complaint, the victim was taken to the hospital for a medical examination. The victim’s phone and clothes were taken away by the police as evidence.
In her statement, she revealed that when she learnt that Aryan and Ashad had taken the victim to Weekend for a party, it was disclosed to her that they had made a fake ID for her so that Ashad could take her to a hotel. She alleged that at the hotel, Ashad gave her daughter a drink, and after taking that drink, she lost consciousness. When she regained consciousness, the victim felt that something had happened.
When she was taken for a medical examination, the victim told her mother that Ashad had taken nude photographs on his and the victim’s phone and that there had been sexual intercourse between them.
Statement of the victim
In her statement recorded in front of the magistrate, the victim, referred to as the ‘prosecutrix’ in the judgment as she was a minor, said that she already knew Ashad studied at her school and his younger cousin, Zidant, was her classmate. Aryan, her friend, was her schoolmate. Aryan introduced her to Ashad.
During the first meeting, they went to have soft drinks. Days later, they met again to play some sports. Slowly, it became a frequent meeting spot for them. Soon, she and Ashad began texting, and their interactions evolved into private meetups. Her mother was aware that she and Ashad were friends and disapproved of the relationship as Ashad was from a different community. She forbade her from meeting Ashad. However, the victim continued to meet him secretly.
One evening, Ashad texted her, eager to meet. He picked her up, and they drove around. Ashad offered her a drink that tasted bitter. When questioned, he dismissed it and urged her to drink. He then drove to a complex where he took her phone and left the car. After returning, he told her that he had booked a room upstairs. They used a fake ID made by Rudra so that she could go to the room with him. In the room, he offered her more drinks, which left her disoriented yet conscious. Ashad assaulted her and took photos. Later, he drove her back to her home.
Despite her reluctance, Ashad soon insisted on meeting, using the nude photos he had taken to coerce her. He would arrive with alcohol and weed, forcing her to partake before assaulting her again. He threatened the victim with leaking the images if she resisted. As the victim was fearful of her mother’s reaction, she remained silent. Their encounters grew frequent, often marked with forced drinking and assault.
One day, when she refused to meet him, Ashad came to her home unannounced as she was alone and assaulted her. In June 2023, he took her out on his birthday and assaulted her again. Later, he assaulted her under the guise of watching a movie at his home. In August, he mentioned that he was planning to go abroad, which provided temporary relief to the victim, but those plans were stalled. In September 2023, he again took her to a hotel and continued the abuse.
When her mother discovered that the victim had been assaulted multiple times, she filed a complaint at Vesu Police Station. As the hearing proceeded, at one point, the victim became hostile. However, during cross-examination, she restated the facts she had mentioned in her statement in front of the magistrate.
The court noted that while in her statement the victim said the sexual relationship was without consent, at one point she mentioned that it had happened with her consent. However, the court observed that, though there was a contradiction, the sexual abuse happened multiple times, with or without the victim’s consent. Interestingly, based on the photos and videos of the victim and the accused, the court noted that it appeared the victim was a consenting party, but as she was a minor at the time, her consent was deemed invalid.
‘FIR is not an encyclopaedia’
In the judgment, the court noted that the defence tried to discredit the statement given by the victim’s mother in front of the magistrate, stating that it was different from what she had told the police in her complaint that led to the FIR. The court invoked the principle that “an FIR is not an encyclopaedia.”
The court stated that the FIR does not necessarily have to contain all the intricate details of the case, as its purpose is merely to set the criminal law in motion. The aim of filing an FIR is not to serve as a comprehensive or final statement of facts. At the time of lodging the FIR, the complainant is often under emotional distress, especially in cases involving sexual assault.
Hence, expecting the victim’s mother to articulate everything—from the names of all involved and exact locations to the modus operandi—is both unreasonable and legally unwarranted. The court emphasised that what matters more is whether the subsequent investigation and trial testimonies consistently establish the offence. Therefore, minor omissions in the FIR do not nullify the prosecution’s case if the core allegations are substantiated by evidence.
Acquittal of Rudra and Pravin
The court acquitted Accused Nos. 2 and 3, Rudra Chandresh Patel and Pravin Netrapalsing Chaudhary, on the grounds that the prosecution failed to prove their involvement beyond a reasonable doubt. While it was alleged that they had forged the victim’s Aadhaar card by altering her birth year to help Ashad gain hotel access with a minor, the evidence presented did not conclusively establish their active role in fabricating or using the document.
No direct proof was submitted to show that either accused had personally used or submitted the false ID at any hotel. Furthermore, forensic analysis of their mobile phones did not reveal any incriminating data supporting the allegation of forgery or conspiracy. Given the lack of credible and corroborative evidence, the benefit of doubt was extended to them, leading to their acquittal.
Judgment
In its judgment, the court convicted Ashad of offences under Sections 376(2)(n) and 450 of the Indian Penal Code, and Sections 4, 5(l), and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, and sentenced him to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 lakh. Out of the fine, Rs 95,000 was to be paid to the victim as compensation.
In default of payment, he would undergo an additional one year of imprisonment. He was also sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 2,000 under Section 450 of the IPC, as he had trespassed into the victim’s house and committed sexual assault there. The court ordered all sentences to run concurrently, and the period of detention already undergone by the accused was to be set off.
