Youth gets 30-year RI in sodomy case

Chandigarh, August 22

Special Judge, Fast-track Court of Chandigarh, Swati Sehgal has sentenced a native of Uttar Pradesh to 30-years rigorous imprisonment (RI) for sodomising an eight-year-old boy. The court has also slapped a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict.

The police had registered the case on a complaint filed by the victim’s mother. The complainant said when she returned home from work on August 4, 2020, in the afternoon, she found the servant was sexually assaulting his son in his room.

When she raised the alarm, the accused fled the spot. The police registered a case under Sections 377 of IPC and 6 of the POCSO Act.

The counsel for the accused argued that he was falsely implicated in the case because the victim’s parents did not want to pay him salary. The counsel alleged that the accused was not paid salary for six months.

The Public Prosecutor said the medical as well as the CFSL reports confirmed that the accused committed the sexual assault on the child.

While convicting the accused, the court observed, “The victim child of the tender age of 8 was to be taken care of and protected from untoward incidents by the convict. However, a convict liable to act as a protector of the victim child became his predator. The convict not only ruthlessly invaded the body of the victim child but with his heinous and condemnable act, has invaded his soul leaving horrifying and painful experiences in his memory. Such a demonic act on the part of the convict calls for a stringent punishment.”

The court, while relying on the statement of the child, said there was neither any reason nor any motive for a child of the tender age of 8 to level false allegations against the accused. The victim identified the accused through an LED screen. The court examined 14 witnesses during the trial.