Thane man gets 10-yr RI for raping wife's minor cousin

Thane: A court here has sentenced a man to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment for raping a 15-year-old relative following which she became pregnant, saying the punishment should convey a message that such perpetrators are dealt with an "iron hand".

Special POCSO Court Judge D S Deshmukh, in the order on June 16, dismissed the defence arguments of the relationship being consensual, asserting that under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the consent of a minor is irrelevant.

A copy of the order was made available on Sunday.

The 35-year-old accused, resident of Ulhasnagar in Maharashtra's Thane district, is married to the victim's maternal cousin and has a son.

According to the prosecution, the victim shifted to the accused's residence at Ghansoli in Navi Mumbai after her father's death.

The accused started touching her inappropriately and raping her in July 2016 after his wife would fall asleep. He also threatened to leave his wife if the victim informed her about the incident.

Seeking to escape, the victim moved to another cousin's house in Thane city.

However, the accused pursued her even there, expressing "love" and continued to rape her under the guise of marriage, even after she moved to Parbhani, the prosecution said.

In December 2016, the victim found she was pregnant and informed the accused, who provided her with an unsuccessful abortion pill.

Subsequently, the accused and his mother took her to a hospital in Ulhasnagar, where a doctor said an abortion was not possible as she was six months' pregnant.

After the victim returned to the accused's home, his mother locked her in a room. The accused continued to rape her on multiple occasions at his house.

The victim later informed about the offence to her sisters and mother, following which a case was registered against the accused in May 2017. The man has been in judicial custody since April 17, 2019.

The prosecution relied heavily on the victim's consistent testimony, medical reports and the crucial DNA evidence.

The judge noted the victim's account of the persistent assaults despite her attempts to change residences, as well as her delayed disclosure of the incidents after her pregnancy was confirmed.

"From the above observations, it is quiet clear that the DNA report deserves to be accepted unless it is absolutely dented, and conviction can be based on DNA test report subject to requirement that sampling the blood has to be proper and there should not be material indicating any tampering of sample," the court said.

The defence argued that the relationship was consensual and challenged the DNA collection. The accused pleaded for leniency in the sentence, citing that he has already been in jail for more than six years and the dependency of his wife and young son.

The prosecution, however, advocated for the maximum sentence due to the gravity of the crime.

Jugde Deshmukh said the POCSO Act, 2012 has been enacted to protect children from the offence of sexual assault.

"In this case, the accused did penetrative sexual assault on the victim aged 15 years and made her pregnant though he is the husband of her cousin sister," the court said.

"The punishment therefore should commensurate with the act of sexual assault and should give a clear message to the society at large that perpetrators in such cases are dealt with iron hand," it said.

The court held the accused guilty under provisions of the POCSO Act and the Indian Penal Code and also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on him.

It ordered that the fine amount be given to the victim as compensation and referred the case to the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) for additional compensation.

The man's mother, who was a co-accused in the case, was acquitted due to lack of sufficient evidence.