A Special POCSO Court in Odisha’s Bargarh district on Wednesday sentenced a 21-year-old youth to 20-year rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting and impregnating a minor girl on the false promise of marriage.
Despite the stigma attached to unwed motherhood, the 16-year-old minor girl mustered the courage and gave birth to a male child.
On 21 February 2022, the victim opted to battle the crime committed against her and appeared at Paikmal Police Station along with her parents to lodge a written report. She alleged that the accused, Saroj Bariha of her village, committed sexual assault on her repeatedly since one year giving false assurance of marriage. When the victim became pregnant, he fled the village. Later the accused was arrested by local police and faced trial in the case.
The court, relying on evidence and deposition witness statements, found the accused Saroj Bariha guilty of raping the minor and impregnating her under relevant sections of Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act.
The convict was sentenced to Rigorous Imprisonment for 20 years and to pay fine of Rs.20,000 in default of payment of fine, he shall undergo R.I. for a further term of 6 months, said prosecution counsel.
The court also directed the State Legal Services Authority to award a compensation of Rs 11 lakh to the rape survivor under the compensation scheme keeping in view the facts and circumstances of the case and the age of the victim at the time of occurrence of the crime.