MUMBAI: A special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court on Tuesday convicted and sentenced a 25-year-old man to 10 years' imprisonment for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in 2015.
Special judge V S Padalkar found the accused guilty under
Indian Penal Code
sections for
rape and kidnapping, and sections of POCSO Act.
Special public prosecutor Iqbal Solkar said the victim and her mother deposed. The mother told the court that she sent her daughter to buy vegetables on February 16, 2002, at 6pm. The mother said that when her daughter did not return, she began to look for her.
The following morning she checked with her mother if her daughter had visited her. But her mother said the child had not come over. The victim's mother then lodged a police complaint.
The mother told the court that the child returned on February 18 but was frightened. She said the child told her that a man had taken her to a house, raped her and hit her when she protested. The mother stated that the man left her in a room and took a tiffin for her later.
The child told her that the accused repeated the act on the following days and finally dropped her close to her house and left on February 18.
The accused denied the allegations in his final statement to the court and claimed the child had run away with him after an altercation with her father. He claimed that he had even tried to convince her to return but she refused.
Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India. Don't miss daily games like Crossword, Sudoku, Location Guesser and Mini Crossword. Armed with a degree in political science and law, Rebecca Samerve...
Read MoreArmed with a degree in political science and law, Rebecca Samervel waltzed into journalism after a brief stint in modeling. As a reporter at The Times of India, Mumbai, she covers courts. She is a self-confessed food-a-holic. Travelling, politics and television are her passions. If you want to find her during the week the only place to look is the Bombay high court.
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