Juvenile awarded 20-year jail term for raping cousin

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 8

A local court today sentenced a 17-year-old Mani Majra boy to 20 years in jail for raping his 16-year-old cousin. He was also directed to pay a fine of Rs 1.05 lakh, of which Rs 1 lakh is to be given to the victim. He, along with accomplice Hari Prasad (21), was an accused in the case and was being tried separately.

The 17-year-old is currently in a juvenile home and will be transferred to the Burail jail as soon as he turns 18. According to his counsel, there are revised guidelines which permit trying a juvenile in a normal court in case of heinous crimes. In other cases, juveniles are tried in special juvenile courts only.

The case

On August 20, 2016, the victim had gone to her brother’s house in Mani Majra after having an argument with her mother. She was sitting on the staircase of the house waiting for her brother to come home. According to the complaint, around 11 pm, her cousins, who lived on the ground floor, forcibly took her to a secluded room.  She said they raped her and fled from the spot. She later informed her mother, who took her to the police.

 A case of rape was registered under Section 376 of the IPC and under Section 8 of the POCSO Act on her complaint. The other accused, Hari Prasad, is facing a separate trial and is currently in custody.

The defence counsel claimed that there was a property dispute in the family and thus the two were falsely implicated in the case. However, the accused was found guilty by the court.