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Section 7: Sexual assault

Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 • Official Statutory Text & Practice Guide

Non-Bailable
Cognizable
Special Court (POCSO)
Act 2012
Section 6 All 46 Sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 Section 8

Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 7

Section 7 defines the offence of Sexual Assault, criminalizing non-penetrative physical abuse where physical contact is made with sexual intent.

  • Non-Penetrative Contact: Criminalizes touching the vagina, penis, anus, or breast of a child, or making the child touch the sexual parts of the offender or any other person.
  • Physical Sexual Acts: Encompasses any physical act involving sexual intent that does not penetrate orifices, eliminating loopholes where lack of penetration formerly resulted in minor charges.
  • Rejection of Skin-to-Skin Defense: The Supreme Court settled that physical contact through clothing constitutes sexual assault within Section 7; direct skin-to-skin contact is not required.
  • Absence of Consent Defense: Consent of the child is inoperative in law, focusing prosecution strictly on the occurrence of the physical act and the accompanying sexual intent.

Section 7 closes historical evidentiary gaps in Indian penal law by recognizing that inappropriate sexual touching inflicts severe dignitary and psychological harm irrespective of penetration.

Key Landmark Precedents:
  • Attorney General for India v. Satish (2021) 15 SCC 568: In a historic judgment overturning the Bombay High Court's 'skin-to-skin' ruling, the Supreme Court held that physical touch with sexual intent constitutes sexual assault under Section 7 regardless of whether there was direct skin-to-skin contact or contact through clothing; requiring skin contact would destroy the legislative purpose of the Act.
Legal Commentary:

The Supreme Court's verdict in Satish restored common-sense and legal sanity to Section 7. The core gravamen of sexual assault is the sexual intent accompanied by non-consensual physical contact, completely rejecting bizarre defenses based on the presence of clothing or fabric.

Section 6 All 46 Sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 Section 8