PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Monday acquitted the principal of a private school and set aside his conviction by the trial court on multiple counts of sexual offences, including rape, seducing and blackmailing women and sodomy, over two years ago.

The appeal of convict Attaullah, who was also the school’s owner, was initially heard by a bench comprising Justice Lal Jan Khattak and Justice Mohammad Nasir Mahfooz.

However, the case was referred to Justice Roohul Amin Khan as the referee judge due to the dissenting views of the judges as Justice Lal Jan ordered the man’s acquittal but Justice Nasir Mahfooz turned down his appeal.

Justice Roohul Amin Khan concurred with the view of Justice Lal Jan and pronounced the acquittal of the appellant.

The appellant was convicted on Oct 30, 2018, by Peshawar’s district and sessions judge in the high-profile case and was sentenced under different provisions of the Pakistan Penal Code to life imprisonment with a fine of Rs1 million.

However, the trial court had acquitted him on the charges of child pornography, child abuse and child seduction under sections 48, 50 and 53 of the Child Protection and Welfare Act and section 377-B (sexual abuse of child) of the PPC as the prosecution claimed that there was no evidence showing the accused had abused any student in the school and that all his victims were adults.

The case had assumed importance due to public outcry over sexual violence.

According to the prosecution, the principal was arrested in his school on July 14, 2017, on the complaint of a former male student. An FIR was registered against him at the Hayatabad police station amid claims about the recovery of sex-related medicines, a laptop, USBs and mobiles with his objectionable videos recorded in three rooms of the school.

Lawyers Hussain Ali and Shabbir Hussain Gigyani appeared for the appellant and contended that their client was falsely implicated in the case and that not a single victim turned up in the case to testify against him.

They argued that no medical or forensic evidence was produced by the prosecution in support of its case.

About the alleged videos, the counsel argued that the guidelines given by the Supreme Court in a judgment about the admissibility of audio and video evidence were not followed in the case.

They said the USBs allegedly recovered by the police were produced in unsealed condition and were not kept in safe custody suggesting the likelihood of them being tampered with.

The lawyers argued that the entire conspiracy was hatched against the appellant by owners of some private schools due to professional jealousy.

The trial court had convicted the appellant on eight counts. He was convicted under Section 365-B (Seducing or forcing to illicit intercourse) of PPC and awarded life imprisonment and Rs200,000 fine, life imprisonment and Rs300,000 fine under Section 377 of PPC (unnatural sexual offence), 25 years imprisonment and Rs100,000 fine under Section 354-A of PPC (stripping woman of her clothes), 20 years imprisonment with fine of Rs200,000 under Section 376 of PPC (punishment for rape), two years imprisonment with Rs10,000 fine under Section 354 of PPC (assault to women to outrage her modesty), four years imprisonment and Rs20,000 fine under Section 497 of PPC (adultery), two years imprisonment and Rs200,000 fine under Section 509 of PPC (sexual harassment), and two years detention and Rs10,000 fine under Section 498 of PPC (enticing married woman).

Following arrest, the principal had recorded his confessional statement with a judicial magistrate on July 19, 2017, saying he used to bring women from outside to the school for adultery. He had also said it was his hobby to film videos of those sexual activities.

The complainant, a former male student, had leveled serious allegations against him including sexual exploitation of students and women and filming of their objectionable videos by secret cameras installed in different parts of the school.

Though initially it was alleged that he had also recorded videos of students, the prosecution later didn’t press that charge saying it hasn’t got any evidence of child sexual abuse against the principal.

Source: Dawn