The Karnataka High Court has strongly criticized the 'culture of repeated adjournments' in criminal trials, highlighting a 12-year delay in the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) trial of a 2014 case involving a six-year-old girl allegedly sexually assaulted at a Bengaluru school.

Justice M Nagaprasanna described the delay as 'shocking' and emphasized that Section 35(2) of the POCSO Act mandates trials to be completed within one year of the court taking cognizance of the offence.The court warned that such delays compound the trauma of victims and transform the judicial process into an instrument of oppression.

It directed a special court to conclude the trial within eight weeks, stressing that the criminal justice system must not surrender to adjournment culture.

The judge noted that the victim cannot be forced to relive trauma endlessly, and that repeated adjournments risk becoming 'a silent accomplice to miscarriage of justice.

' This case underscores systemic challenges in ensuring timely justice for child sexual abuse cases, with the court urging authorities to prioritize swift and fair proceedings.