Two get death sentence for rape and attempt to kill minor, 10 months after crime

The accused, one of whom was a minor at the time, sexually assaulted the girl before physically assaulting her; survivor was abandoned near a railway line and found by locals in an unconscious state

PRAYAGRAJ/LUCKNOW A Pocso court in Pratapgarh on Wednesday awarded death sentence to two persons accused of raping a minor girl and stabbing her in the eye, within 10 months of committing the crime on December 27, 2021. The court of additional district judge, Pankaj Kumar Srivastava, also imposed a penalty of ₹50,000 each on them, after holding them guilty of outraging the modesty of the survivor.

The police arrested the accused on the basis of the survivor’s statement. (Picfor representation)

The two convicts, Haleem and Rizwan, residents of Parsai village under Nawabganj police station limits of Pratapgarh, were arrested after kidnapping the girl in December last year. The police chargesheeted the duo under different IPC sections related to the crime as well as sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, stated a press note from the state government. The incident occurred in the city’s Nawabganj police station area.

The accused, one of whom was a minor at the time, sexually assaulted the girl (16 years old then) before physically assaulting her, police officials said, adding the survivor was abandoned near a railway line, and was found by locals in an unconscious state later in the night.

The police arrested the accused on the basis of the survivor’s statement. The minor offender’s case was transferred to the Juvenile Justice board.

After hearing arguments of the advocate for the accused and special public prosecutors – Rajesh Tripathi and Nirbhay Singh – representing the state, the special judge of the Pocso court sentenced Haleem and Rizwan to death and directed them to pay a fine of ₹50,000 each to the survivor.