28-year-old Mumbai man gets 20 years rigorous imprisonment for sexual assault of 4-year-old girl in 2020

Mumbai: A special POCSO court on Tuesday convicted and sentenced a 28-year-old man to 20 years rigorous imprisonment for the sexual assault of a four-year-old girl in his neighbourhood during the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020. Among the witnesses cited by special public prosecutor Geeta Malankar were the child and her mother. The victim's mother deposed that while she was teaching her elder daughter, the younger child went to the common passage to watch the rain. When the child returned and complained of pain and a burning sensation, she disclosed that the neighbour had sexually assaulted her. The victim's father, who worked as a cook at a restaurant and was away for work, returned home immediately after being informed to lodge the police complaint. The defence argued that the man was falsely implicated due to a personal dispute and suggested the child was suffering from a medical infection rather than a a sexual assault. However, the court found no evidence of such a dispute or prior illness. Additional Sessions Judge Shilpa S. Todkar also imposed a fine of 10,000 rupees on the convict, noting that the amount should be paid to the victim as compensation.