POCSO court sentences 51-yr-old man to life imprisonment for raping minor girl

When advocate sought minimum sentence on account of age of the accused and his good behaviour in jail, the court observed that crimes against children is “something which cannot be allowed to desensitise a court while awarding a sentence in matters in which such offences have been proved”.

MUMBAI: A special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act court sentenced a 51-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping and threatening a 12-year-old girl of physical harm. Both the accused and the survivor are from the same neighbourhood in Goregaon.

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As per the prosecution, the accused had raped the minor on multiple occasions and had even beaten her up at his home, in 2015. The incident came to light on August 16 of the same year, when the girl and her mother were out on a walk and saw their neighbour on the way. The girl made a sign of slap when he asked her to come near him. Finding it strange, the mother enquired with the girl, who then revealed to her that the man had raped her seven times in the past and had also beaten her up at his home.

The family of the girl approached an NGO for help and subsequently a case was registered at the Bangur Nagar police station.

In court, the defence alleged that the accused was falsely implicated due to disputes over money with the girl’s mother. However, the court observed that nothing was brought forward in the cross examination to prove the same. The court also noted that the medical evidence corroborated the girl’s claim and found the testimony of the girl to be reliable.

In a detailed order passed on March 17, special judge S J Ansari stated that the prosecution has been able to prove that the accused had repeatedly subjected a girl under the age of 16 years to rape and, also, threatened her of beatings if she informed anybody about it.

When the advocate for the accused sought a minimum sentence on account of the age of the accused and his good behaviour in jail, the court observed that rising crimes against small children is “something which cannot be allowed to desensitise a court while awarding a sentence in matters in which such offences have been proved”.

The court directed the District Legal Service Authority (DLSA) to award appropriate compensation to the victim as well. “The mere fact that she showed herself to be a child having a resilient nature cannot automatically lead to it being concluded that she will not need rehabilitation,” stated the court.