New Delhi, May 24 -- The Supreme Court on Friday chose not to jail a man convicted of rape under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, ruling that the victim-now married to him with a child-had suffered more from the legal proceedings than from the original offence. A bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan made the rare move to invoke Article 142 of the Constitution, which empowers the apex court to do "complete justice" by taking any decision in order to suspend the sentence while upholding the conviction. The ruling was one of 11 involving justice Oka, who retired on Friday. "In the context of this situation, sadly, true justice lies in not sentencing the accused to undergo imprisonment," the court said, emphasising that the case would not serve as precedent. "This case is not going to be a precedent and should not be a precedent. This case is an illustration of the complete failure of our society our legal system." The ruling emerged from a suo motu case initiated in December 2023, following controversial observations by the Calcutta High Court. The high court had acquitted the 25-year-old man but made unnecessary remarks about adolescent sexuality, advising female adolescents to control their sexual urges. The Supreme Court had previously termed these observations "unwarranted and erroneous" while restoring the man's conviction. However, it constituted a committee of experts, social workers and psychiatrists to assess the case's unique circumstances. An amicus curiae was also appointed to assist the court. The committee and amicus curiae findings revealed that while the man's actions constituted a legal offence, the victim did not perceive it as such. The case stemmed from a consensual relationship but constituted statutory rape since minors are not deemed to be of the age where they can give informed consent. htc...