Mumbai man gets 7 years in jail for sexually abusing minor

The incident happened on the evening on November 19, 2016, when the teenager got into the accused’s taxi at Bandra to go to a friend’s house.

A special court under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on Tuesday sentenced a taxi driver to seven years imprisonment for sexually abusing a 15-year-old in 2016.

A special court under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on Tuesday sentenced a taxi driver to seven years imprisonment for sexually abusing a 15-year-old in 2016. Raj K Raj/HT Photo (HT Photo)

The incident happened on the evening on November 19, 2016, when the teenager got into the accused’s taxi at Bandra to go to a friend’s house. The teenager said he had finished his classes in Bandra and decided to go to the friend’s place, also in Bandra, since his maternal grandmother had passed away, and there were guests at his home owing to which he would not be able to study.

In his complaint, the teenager said the taxi driver asked him to sit in the front seat and did not take the regular route. The driver, instead, took the taxi to a secluded area and threatened the teenager with a knife. He then sexually abused him.

Later, when the driver dropped him at his destination, the teenager noted the taxi’s registration number. He narrated the incident to his parents and a complaint was filed with the Bandra police station. The driver was arrested in December 2016.

On the basis of the boy’s testimony, the POCSO court held the taxi driver guilty and sentenced him to seven years imprisonment.