India: Man falsely accused of raping kid acquitted

Article here. Excerpt:

'A 38-year-old man, who spent two years in jail on charges of raping his friend's 10-year-old daughter, has now been acquitted by a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court after the minor did not testify before the court. The child's father admitted that he had falsely implicated him at the behest of his landlady who had a dispute with the accused.

In a detailed judgement copy, the court accepted the father's deposition without questions and instead said, "In the matter, the star and prime witness for the prosecution was the victim minor. But she is not examined by the prosecution and the reason is best known to the prosecution itself. The non-examination of the victim in this matter is fatal to the case of prosecution."

The father had registered the complaint on May 11, 2015. He told the cops that the previous evening the accused came to his house. The father said that while he had to leave for work, the accused informed him that he was going to stay back and rest for a while. The child was alone at home with him. The father further stated that around 9pm he returned to the house as he was feeling unwell. He noticed that his daughter was weeping. The father said that when he asked for the reason, the child told him that the accused had sexually assaulted her. However, when the landlady heard the screams she came to the house and knocked the door. The child then told her that the accused opened the door and fled.'