Kendrapada: A 35-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment by the additional district judge-cum-special judge (Pocso) on Thursday for kidnapping and raping a 14-year-old girl in Jajpur district last year.
The convict was also fined Rs 40,000. Failure to pay the fine would result in an additional year of imprisonment, the court ruled.
According to special public prosecutor Rajiv Kumar Mohanty, the incident took place on Feb 2, 2023, when the man kidnapped the minor girl who was alone at home. Police rescued her four days later, by which time medical examination revealed she was two months pregnant due to multiple sexual assaults.
The victim’s father filed an FIR on Feb 6, 2023, alleging that his daughter was repeatedly raped by their neighbour. Police arrested the accused under Section 376 of IPC and Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, 2012.
Judge Abhijit Palei pronounced the verdict after examining 11 witnesses, including the girl, and reviewing medical reports. The court has also directed the Odisha State Legal Services Authority to provide Rs 1 lakh compensation to the girl under Odisha Victim Compensation Scheme.