Justice Pushpa may not get extension as Bombay HC judge. Here’s why

Justice Pushpa V Ganediwala, who gave controversial judgements in POCSO cases, is not likely to continue as an ad hoc judge of the Bombay High Court as the Supreme Court has decided not to extend her judgeship.

She will now have to go back as a District Judge at the end of her term in the second week of February 2022.

In January 2021, Justice Ganediwala had acquitted a 39-year-old man of sexual assault of a minor girl under POCSO Act on the grounds that since there was no skin-to-skin contact with the minor he had molested, there was no offence under the rule.

Also read: SC sets aside Bombay HC order on ‘skin-to-skin’ sexual assault interpretation

Again that month, she acquitted a 50-year-old man, ruling that unzipping pants in front of a a five-year-old girl could not be categorised as a sexual offence under POCSO Act.

Both the judgments were overturned by the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court Collegium, which had initially recommended her two-year extension in ad hoc judgeship, was forced to make a retreat as the Centre disagreed on the extension on the ground of her insensitivity in child sexual abuse cases.

As of now, many reports suggest that the Collegium has not taken any decision to continue her judgeship, due to which her term will come to an end and she will have to revert to being a district judge.