Gurugram court convicts 4 in 2021 rape of 13-year-old girl, sentences 3 to 20 years

A Gurugram court convicted four men in the 2021 rape of a 13-year-old girl in Manesar, sentencing three to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each.

A Gurugram court has convicted four men in a 2021 case involving the rape of a 13-year-old girl in Manesar, sentencing three of them to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each and the fourth to five years, police said on Saturday.

Four men were convicted in the 2021 Manesar rape case involving a 13-year-old girl, with three sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each.

The court of Additional Sessions Judge Dr Sunita Grover delivered the verdict on Thursday. The case dates back to November 17, 2021, when the four accused allegedly sexually assaulted the minor in a room in Naharpur, Gurugram, according to the complaint filed by the girl’s mother the next day at the Women police station in Manesar.

Police registered a case under Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 376(3) (committing rape against a female under 16 years of age) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Sections 376(D) (gang rape) and Section 365/34 (two or more people jointly kidnapped or abducted someone with the intention of keeping them secretly and wrongfully confined) of the IPC were subsequently added during the investigation.

Three of the convicts were sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and fined ₹30,000 each. Two of them were also awarded five years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹10,000 each under Section 365/34 of the IPC.

The fourth convict was sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹10,000 under Section 365/34 of the IPC.

The case was registered nearly five years ago, and the verdict follows the conclusion of the trial in the special court dealing with cases involving sexual offences against children.