24-year-old man sentenced to life for raping Dalit minor

Rajkot: A special Pocso court in Porbandar sentenced a 24-year-old man to rigorous imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life, for kidnapping and raping a 14-year-old Dalit girl in Oct 2023. The court relied entirely on scientific evidence and independent testimonies, overcoming the hurdle of the minor victim and her parents turning hostile during the trial.The crime took place on Oct 6, 2023. The accused, Afrin Asgar Qadri, intercepted two 14-year-old girls who were on their way to a tuition class. On the false pretext that one of their mothers was severely ill and had been hospitalized, Qadri convinced the teenagers to get on his motorcycle. Armed with a knife, he threatened to kill them if they raised the alarm and drove them to a secluded spot in some bushes near Ranavav, where he sexually assaulted one of the girls.At trial, the prosecution faced a major setback when the victim and her parents retracted their initial statements and turned hostile. The prosecution successfully pivoted to rely on forensic and circumstantial evidence to prove the charges.Special Pocso judge P H Sharma heavily weighed the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and DNA reports, which conclusively matched Qadri's DNA with samples collected from both the crime scene and the victim's clothing. Testimonies from independent eyewitnesses — who saw the accused fleeing and subsequently rescued the girls — strongly corroborated the prosecution's arguments."Delivering the judgment on Friday, the court convicted Afrin Asgar Qadri under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Pocso Act, and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Qadri was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for the remainder of his natural life under Section 4 of the Pocso Act, alongside additional concurrent sentences and fines for kidnapping and criminal intimidation," said additional public prosecutor SB Jethva.The court ordered compensation of Rs 4 lakh to each minor victim under the Gujarat Victim Compensation Scheme, acknowledging the severe physical and psychological trauma they endured.Taking a stern view of the attempted subversion of justice, the judge also ordered the initiation of perjury proceedings against the victim and her parents under Section 344 of the Criminal Procedure Code, noting that they had deliberately provided false evidence under oath.