Kendrapada: Additional district-cum-special Pocso-cum-children’s court in Kendrapada on Friday sentenced an 18-year-old girl to 20 years of imprisonment for abetting the gang rape of her classmate in 2023. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 18,000 on the girl, who was a juvenile at the time of the crime.
According to the prosecution, on Oct 17, 2023, the accused, then 16, offered a drug-laced cold drink to her 17-year-old classmate near their college. After the girl fell unconscious, she was taken to a hotel in Cuttack by two men where she was allegedly gang-raped in the presence of the convict.
The survivor, a Plus II science student, filed an FIR the next day after returning to her village. Police arrested the convict on Oct 20, followed by the arrest of the two male suspects on Oct 21.
Judge Pragyan Paramita Roul found the accused guilty under various sections of the IPC and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. The verdict was based on testimonies from 16 witnesses, including the survivor, and medical reports.
The court directed the Odisha State Legal Services Authority (OSLSA) to pay a compensation of Rs 7.50 lakh to the survivor. Special public prosecutor Manoj Kumar Sahu said the trial of the two male accused is still pending.
Initially handled by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB), the case was transferred to the children’s court after the JJB determined that the convict was fully aware of her actions at the time of the offence.