Pune: The court of Special Judge (Pocso) Sucheta M Takalikar on Wednesday convicted and sentenced a 41-year-old casual worker to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment for raping a 13-year-old girl on an agri-tourism farm property under the Rajgad police area in rural Pune in Nov 2018. Police registered an FIR in this connection on March 30, 2019, almost five months after the incident, when the girl was found to be pregnant. Additional public prosecutor Arudhanti Brahme told TOI, “Though there was a delay in lodging the FIR, we proved the case through the victim’s testimony, medical evidence confirming pregnancy and a conclusive DNA report. The victim’s mother was working at the farm property. On the day of the incident, it was Diwali, the accused gagged the girl and committed sexual assault.”The court relied on the DNA report which mentioned that “the victim and the accused are concluded to be the biological parents of the baby of the victim.” The court further observed that the victim has fully supported prosecution case. Her evidence is corroborated by medical evidence.On the delayed FIR, the court observed that the delay had been satisfactorily explained. “The girl was consistent with her version that the accused threatened to kill her in case she disclosed the incident to her parents. This explanation given by her appears to me satisfactorily. Therefore, it cannot be said that delay in lodging FIR is fatal to the prosecution. ” Moreover, the victim’s mother lodged the FIR immediately after the incident came to light when the girl was found to be pregnant, the court noted. The court held the accused is guilty of having committed offences punishable under Sections 376-3 (rape on a less than 16 years of age), 506 (criminal intimidation) of IPC and sections 4, 6 of the Pocso Act. However, it preferred sentencing the accused under the IPC sections. The court also ordered that Rs 10,000 be paid to the survivor after recovery of the fine from the accused.
