Srinagar: A court here on Wednesday sentenced a man to ten years rigorous imprisonment in connection with a case related to the rape of a minor girl from Soura area here in 2012.
Court of 2nd Additional Sessions Judge Srinagar, Renu Dogra Gupta handed the sentence to Irshad Ahmad of Ahlan Gadwak Kokernag who was convicted a day before by it for the commission of offence under section 376 of RPC. The Court ordered that the convict be lodged in Central Jail Srinagar to serve the sentence.
The Court also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 to the convict who currently resides at Anchar Soura here.
In case of default in payment of fine, the court said, the accused shall further undergo simple imprisonment for a period of six months. It, however, ordered that the custody undergone by the convict during investigation, inquiry and trial of the case, shall be set off against the sentence of imprisonment.
Before the court, Additional Public Prosecutor Farooq Ahmad Malik sought punishment of life imprisonment for the accused for the “brutal act.”He contended that the minor girl of less than 14 years was victimized by the convict without showing any kind of humanity or mercy towards her. “The convict deserves no mercy as he has not shown any mercy on the minor helpless girl,” he argued.
Counsel representing the convict argued that the convict is the sole bread earner for his family including his wife and two minor children and deserved mercy.
While convicting the accused, the court noted that he had gagged mouth of the minor and committed heinous and barbaric crime of rape with her; and also threatened her not to disclose the same to anyone.
“The accused being a major and married person was fully aware of the consequences of his barbaric act,” the court had said.
It held that on the other hand the victim girl, being an innocent minor and unaware of the consequences, kept silence due to the threat given by the accused, resulting into her pregnancy.
The court observed that the victim might have suffered so much which cannot be expressed in words. “And (she) has lost everything including honour, dignity, education etc. She became a helpless victim of a diabolic person whose sin was only this that she used to go to the accused’s rented residence for playing with his younger brother…..and innocent child was made prey of lust by accused”.
“The Crime of this nature against the child girl is definitely a crime against the society”, the court had observed.
As per the prosecution, police received a complaint from the girl’s father that he took his daughter for medical checkup after she complained of abdominal pain. The doctors confirmed her pregnancy.
The minor girl disclosed that the person who resided in their neighborhood in Soura area here as “tenant” was responsible for the heinous offence.
A case (FIR No. 33/2012) for the commission of offence punishable under Section 376 RPC was registered at police Station Soura here and the investigation started and the charge sheet was filed against him on June 23, 2012.