Karnataka - Bangalore

Appeal comes up for hearing after sentence is served

BANGALORE: Justice delayed is justice denied. Nothing would illustrate this adage better than a case in which the sentence of two persons accused of being involved in a prostitution racket was set aside by the High Court almost a year after the two had served a five-year term in prison.

The 1st Fast Track Court of Hassan, in 2003, convicted Thimappa alias Thimaraj and Kumar, both of Arkalgud in Hassan district, of being involved in trafficking. The court found them guilty of forcing an 18-year-old girl into prostitution.

The Hassan police had traced the girl to a brothel in Mumbai and brought her back. Subsequently, Thimappa and Kumar were arrested and charged under Section 372 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The Hassan court, on September 26, 2003, sentenced the two to five years’ imprisonment. Both the accused filed an appeal in 2003 before the High Court against the Hassan court judgment. The appeal, for some reason, did not come up before the High Court from 2003 till 2009. Meanwhile, Thimappa and Kumar had served the sentence and were released.

When their appeal came up for hearing before the High Court, Justice Arali Nagaraj was aghast when he came to know that the case was not posted before the court for more than six years. He was all the more shocked when he was told that the accused had served their term and were now out of jail. Notwithstanding their release, the judge allowed the appeal and set aside the sentence of the two accused. He directed the State to pay compensation of Rs. 10,000 to each of the accused. The Government prosecutor pleaded in vain against the payment of compensation. His argument was that the State was in no way responsible for the non-posting of a case.

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