UP man gets death for rape & murder of 5-yr old Ludhiana girl

The Court of Additional Sessions Judge Amar Jeet Singh has awarded the death penalty to Sonu Singh,  28, from Fatehpur district of Uttar Pradesh, for the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl.

Delivering the verdict in 58 pages, based on the testimonies of 16 witnesses and supported by CCTV footage and DNA reports, the court held the accused guilty beyond any doubt. It also imposed a fine of ₹5,50,000 on him, of which ₹5 lakh will be paid as compensation to the victim’s family.

“There can never be graver and more heinous crime than rape and murder of a five-year-old girl, who was unable to comprehend as to what was going to happen when she let herself to be taken by the convict on the pretext of playing. The deceased victim had no idea that a person would take her dignity and life in return of a chocolate of Rs 10,” observed the court.

“The diabolic nature of the convict shows his satanic nerves, who behaved in a predatory manner, and to satisfy his libidinous urge, he brutally raped the victim and then, to save himself, killed her by way of strangulation and dumped the body in a bed box and fled," remarked the judge.

“Indeed, such criminals are danger to the society at large and are beyond reformation and rehabilitation. Therefore, this court is of the firm opinion that the present case falls within the purview of the 'rarest of rare cases' and calls for imposition of capital punishment upon the convict," said the court awarding the death penalty.

Pleading for leniency, the accused stated that he was poor, unmarried, orphan having no family. At the time of incident, he was drunk so "he doesn’t know whether he committed the crime or not".

According to the prosecution, the incident occurred on December 28, 2023, when the accused took the victim from a tea shop run by her grandfather in Mohalla New Ram Nagar, Ludhiana, on the pretext of playing with her. The child was taken to the rented room of the convict. When the child did not return after several hours and the mobile phone of the accused was found switched off, the family informed the police.

Daba police station SHO Kulbir Singh, along with his team and the complainant, conducted a search and checked the above said rented room. During the search, the child’s body was recovered from a bed box in the room, following which an FIR was registered against the accused.

The police also checked the CCTV footage from the vicinity, including a camera installed at the house of one Abhay Kashyap, where the accused was seen taking the victim. This evidence corroborated the prosecution’s case, leading to the arrest of the accused. During investigation, the court also considered the DNA report of accused and victim. Semen of accused was found on the clothes of the victim.

After considering the evidence on record and the gravity of the offence, the court found the accused guilty and awarded the death penalty.

The death sentence pronounced by the Sessions Court will be subject to confirmation by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, as required by law.