Jeypore (Koraput): A special POCSO court in Jeypore has sentenced a 25-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) for kidnapping and raping a minor girl in the Sunabeda police station area of Koraput district in 2020.
Additional District and Sessions Judge of the Jeypore Fast Track Special Court (FTSC), Pragnyanalini Mishra, sentenced the convict, Laxman Dadia of Rajpalam village, to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 42,000 under Section 4(2) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. In default of payment of the fine, he will have to undergo an additional 14 months of imprisonment.
The court also directed the government to pay compensation of Rs 6 lakh to the victim through the District Legal Services Authority, along with the fine amount collected.
On August 16, 2020, the minor was on her way to her grandfather’s house when the accused, along with a minor accomplice, abducted her and took her to a forest area, where he raped her while the accomplice stood guard. The victim later managed to escape and took shelter in a nearby woman’s house.
After receiving information from the girl over the phone, her father, with the help of police, rescued her. Sunabeda police registered a case, arrested the accused, and filed a chargesheet after investigation.
Special Public Prosecutor (POCSO) Dr Gayatri Devi appeared for the prosecution.
