66-year-old man sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping two minor sisters in Noida

The victims lived with their parents as tenants in a shanty owned by suspect, Chandrika alias Kabadi. The girls told the court that when their parents are away at work, the suspect would take them to his room and sexually assault them

A 66-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping two minor sisters, aged seven and five years, in Noida, prosecution officials said on Friday.

Chandrika alias Kabadi was sentenced to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹50,000 under Section 6 of the Pocso Act (Shutterstock/representational image)

The crime was reported in 2019 and the case was heard by the Pocso (Protection of Children From of Sexual Offences) court in Surajpur, Greater Noida.

According to Chavanpal Bhati, special public prosecutor, the victims lived with their parents as tenants in a shanty owned by suspect, Chandrika alias Kabadi.

“The victims’ parents worked as daily wage earners and used to leave for work in the morning and return in the evening. On April 3, 2019, when their parents returned from work, the girls told them that Chandrika had sexually assaulted them. They revealed that the suspect would take the girls to his room and sexually assault them. Chandrika had also threatened them with dire consequences if they disclosed the matter to anyone,” said the prosecutor, adding that the suspect was 62 years old at the time of the incident.

Bhati said the children’s father reported the matter to NGO Childline. “The Childline team counselled the children and their family members and advised them to file a complaint at the Sector 20 police station. The next day, a case was registered against him under Indian Penal Code sections of rape and under the Pocso Act and he was arrested,” said Bhati.

Chandrika was produced in court and sent to judicial custody. A chargesheet was filed on April 19 and the charges were framed on September 24, 2019.

During the trial, the suspect denied the charges and said that the victim’s father had a personal enmity with him. “I owned the shanty where they lived. The children’s father had not paid rent for six months. He also wanted to illegally occupy the shanty and for that he filed a fake case and framed me,” he said.

The seven-year-old victim told the court that the suspect used to take her and her sister to his house, remove their clothes and touch them inappropriately. The five-year-old girl told the court that the man had raped her. “I suffered pain and bleeding after he assaulted me,” she told the court.

Chandra Mohan Shrivastava, special judge, Pocso court, said the evidence does not show that the case was filed against Chandrika to occupy his shanty.

The court observed, “The undertrial has not only committed a social crime of extremely heinous nature with the minor victims but has also committed a crime which brings shame to society. Chandrika alias Kabadi is sentenced to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined ₹50,000 under Section 6 of the Pocso Act. The sum of the fine should be given to the victims as compensation.”