Jagran correspondent, West Delhi. The special POCSO court in Dwarka, while giving its verdict in a serious case of sexual assault of a 16-year-old minor, has given severe punishment to the culprit. Additional Sessions Judge Vaibhav Mehta has sentenced convict Pradeep Rai alias Monu to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 6 of the POCSO Act. This case is related to Dabri police station area, in which the court has also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on the culprit.
During the court proceedings, the prosecution argued that the minor girl had become pregnant due to this heinous act of the convict. During the hearing, the victim herself remained present in the court and demanded maximum punishment for the culprit and said that no lenient attitude should be adopted towards her. At the same time, the defense lawyer argued that the convict is 40 years old, he has two small children and his wife is suffering from TB.
However, the court rejected these arguments considering the seriousness of the crime and the physical and mental trauma of the victim. Along with sentencing, the court has fixed a total compensation of Rs 15 lakh to provide financial assistance to the victim.
Out of this, an amount of Rs 2.62 lakh has already been given, while the Delhi Legal Services Authority has been directed to pay the remaining Rs 12.38 lakh. The court made it clear that in case of non-payment of fine, the convict will have to spend an additional month in jail.
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