KASARAGOD : A 46-year-old man from Kasaragod’s Shankarapadi, was sentenced to life imprisonment till death, for raping a four-year-old girl from his neighbourhood.
The accused Ravindran is also required to pay a fine of Rs 25,000 in punishment.
Sessions court judge PS Sasikumar delivered the sentence, the first ruling since POCSO(Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act was amended in Aprii of 2018.
The accused has been convicted under Section 376AB of the Indian Penal Code(IPC), which deals with rape of girls under 12 year.
The amendment states that, in case of rape committed against girls under 12, an accused shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term not less than 20 and may be extended to imprisonment for remainder of the person’s natural fine with or without fine.
On 9 October, 2018 the accused lured the four-year-old into his house, while she played with friends in his courtyard. The crime came to light after the child’s mother learnt of the incident from her and reported to the police. It transpired that the dalit child had been subject to sexual abuse by the man earlier too.
