A special POCSO court in Mumbai has sentenced a 50-year-old man to life imprisonment for sexually assaulting his niece and impregnating her.
The court emphasized the gravity of the man’s actions, deeming them warranting the maximum sentence without any leniency.
In its order, the court stated, “The accused, a relative of the prosecutrix (survivor), engaged in sexual intercourse and repeated rape, resulting in the impregnation of the prosecutrix. Following an abortion, the prosecutrix is currently residing in the shelter home of CWC (Child Welfare Committee).”
Special Judge T S Bhogte found the man guilty of rape on November 24, with the detailed order becoming available on Thursday. The case against the man was registered in July 2017. As per the prosecution, the survivor is a native of Uttar Pradesh where she had studied until Class 6. She shifted to Mumbai in 2012 for further studies and lived with her uncle and his family.
The survivor informed the court that her uncle sexually harassed her for two years by touching her inappropriately whenever there were no other persons in the house. After Holi in March 2017, she claimed her uncle sexually assaulted her and threatened her not to reveal it to anyone.
The man denied the allegations, asserting that his niece was not a minor at the time and that they had a consensual relationship. Rejecting his defense, the court said, “The relationship of the accused with the prosecutrix is within the degree of prohibited relationship. Under these circumstances, it is improbable that the prosecutrix (survivor), who is the niece of the accused, is the consenting party for a sexual relationship with the accused.” The court relied on medical evidence indicating the girl’s age to be between 19 and 20. Besides, the court said there was no evidence to show that the girl was a minor at the time of the incident.
As it convicted the man, the court said the prosecution had established that he had “committed forceful sexual intercourse” with her, “repeatedly committed rape,” and “threatened” the survivor to not disclose the assaults to anyone.
