E-Paper
Chandigarh: 26-year-old man to undergo 10-year RI for rape of woman
The case was registered under Sections 376(1) (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 450 (house-trespass) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Mauli Jagran police station on July 30 2019, on the complaint of the victim’s husband.
A local court has awarded 10-year rigorous imprisonment to a 26-year-old man for raping a woman at her residence on July 24, 2019.
The convict, who was the victim’s neighbour and gave tuitions to her children, had gained entry into the house on the pretext of taking out vegetables from her fridge. After raping her, the accused had also threatened to kill her.
The case was registered under Sections 376(1) (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 450 (house-trespass) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Mauli Jagran police station on July 30 2019, on the complaint of the victim’s husband.
The accused was arrested but he claimed he was not guilty and opted for trial. The prosecution examined nine witnesses to establish his guilt.
The accused claimed that he was implicated, and stated that he was called to the police station on July 27, 2019, and taken into custody. He was informed later that the complainant gave a complaint against him but the police did not register the FIR immediately, and had done so after two days.
He said there was some dispute with regard to the tuition fee of the kids and therefore, the woman gave a false complaint against him. He had further accused the victim of extorting money from other boys as well by threatening to implicate them in rape cases. The accused also claimed he was not present on the premises on the day of the incident.
The court, however, observed that it is highly improbable that a woman would make such allegations for a petty issue such as tuition fees. She was a homemaker and not entitled to arrange the money. It is beyond imagination that a family together will conspire to hatch a conspiracy against the accused just to evade payment of tuition fee. The court also dismissed his alibi and observed there was no record of him being at work at the time of the incident.
The court further observed that the defence failed to bring to fore any other person who was falsely implicated by the complainant. Observing that the delay in filing of the FIR was on account of the woman being embarrassed and in shock after the incident, the court pronounced the 26-year-old man guilty.
During the pronouncement of the quantum of sentence, the convict prayed for leniency, however, the court of Swati Sehgal, observed, “The accused, in order to satisfy his lust, had ravished the woman, leaving a permanent scar on her body and soul. Rape is a barbaric act which one human can commit with another, violating one’s right to life with dignity. It is an offence not only against the victim, but also against her family that suffers along with her. Such an act of the accused deserves to be dealt with sternly and calls for stringent punishment.”
The court also made a recommendation to the district legal services authority to grant compensation to the victim under victim compensation scheme.
