Any compromise or out-of-court settlement effected by the parents of a minor rape victim with the object of stifling criminal prosecution cannot receive the sanction of law, observed the Kerala High Court while denying bail to a man who was accused of sexually assaulting his 17-year-old child. Justice Kauser Edappagath held that such a settlement would not override the State’s duty to prosecute the offences against children. It was noted that the survivor had narrated how she was subjected to sexual assault. The court noticed that the mother had not contended the alleged assault, she only claimed of a subsequent settlement. The mother cannot legally settle a case against the father for sexual harassment or assault of their minor daughter, and therefore the compromise in this case could not be accepted.