38-year-old man gets 10 years in jail for kidnap, rape of minor student

According to the victim, the man confined her to a room in Aligarh and raped her for several days before she was rescued by the police

The Gautam Budh Nagar district court on Thursday sentenced a 38-year-old man to 10 years’ imprisonment for kidnapping and raping a minor student in 2016 in Greater Noida, prosecution officials said on Friday. The convict had lured the girl, then 16-years-old, and raped her on the pretext that he would marry her, they added.

Vikas Nagar, special judge Pocso court, on Thursday relied on prosecution witnesses and medical reports to convict Chaudhury while acquitting two others for lack of evidence. (Shutterstock/representational image)

According to JP Bhati, special public prosecutor, on July 11, 2016, the victim, a class 12 student of a private school in Greater Noida, went missing. The victim is the daughter of a farmer residing in a village under Badalpur police station area.

“On that day, the victim was heading to Lal Kuan, Ghaziabad, to attend a beauty parlour course. When she did not return him by 5pm, her family started looking for her and the next day filed a complaint at the Badalpur police station,” said the prosecutor.

The girl’s father in his complaint said Rahul Chaudhury, a neighbour and father of two children, had kidnapped her. On the basis of the complaint, an FIR under charges of kidnapping were registered against the suspect and an investigation was launched.

Five days later, on July 16, the girl was rescued by the police from Jattari, Aligarh, where she was being kept confined by Chaudhury.

“Names of two accomplices, Chaudhury’s cousin Vishnu and neighbour Dr Ravindra were added to the FIR. The case went to trial on October 17, 2016,” said Bhati.

The prosecution produced 14 witnesses including the victim’s father, uncle, doctor, police personnel, etc.

During the trial, the victim told the court that she was waiting for an auto to go to Lal Kuan when Chaudhury reached there in a car and gave her a ride. He offered her something laced with sedatives and soon she fell unconscious. When she came to, she found herself confined to a room in Aligarh. Besides Chaudhury, Vishnu and Dr Ravindra were present there, she told the judge.

The girl said Chaudhury told her that she was brought there to be married to him. Chaudhury also threatened to kill her father and brother if she resisted. There, he raped her for days, she told the judge.

Chaudhury also brought her to Ghaziabad court to register the marriage, but found out that the girl was 17 years and 11 months old and hence the marriage was not registered.

Jitendra Bhati, counsel of suspect, said his clients were wrongly framed in this case and there was no sufficient evidence.

Vikas Nagar, special judge Pocso court, on Thursday relied on prosecution witnesses and medical reports to convict Chaudhury while acquitting two others for lack of evidence. “Rahul is sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹50,000 under Section 4 of Pocso Act, five years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹20,000 under Section 366 (kidnapping) of the IPC, and six months’ rigorous imprisonment and ₹10,000 fine under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of IPC,” the court said, adding that 50% of the fine amount shall be paid to the victim.