A 21-year-old man was sentenced with life imprisonment by a special court in Western Uttar Pradesh Hathras district for raping a four-year-old girl, a police officer said on Friday.
The sentence followed within 50 days of the commission of the crime, in line with the deterrent theory of penal laws entailing quick punishment.
The accused has also been slapped a penalty of Rs one lakh by the district court, which delivered its verdict within 50 days of the incident that took place in Sasni area on October 13, Hathras Superintendent of Police Vineet Jaiswal said.
He said when the matter reached the police, an FIR was lodged at the Sasni police station and the accused arrested and booked under Indian Penal Code sections 376 AB (raping a child under 12 years of age) and various provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
“The district police treated the matter with the utmost sensitivity. Forensic experts were engaged and quality evidence collected. The investigation was also completed only in nine days after which a charge-sheet was filed in the court,” Jaiswal said.
“The police ensured strong arguments in the court while witnesses, evidence and documents were produced in the court on time that has led to the court's verdict within 50 days,” he said.
“The court has sentenced the accused to a life term in jail and slapped a penalty of Rs one lakh on him,” the district police chief said.
(Published 04 December 2020, 17:00 IST)
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