A court in Jhansi has delivered a stern verdict in a harrowing case of abduction and sexual assault, sentencing a 35-year-old man to a decade behind bars. The Special POCSO Act court judge, Mohd Niyaz Ahmed Ansari, pronounced the sentence on Monday, also imposing a substantial fine.
Details of the Abduction and Assault
The convicted individual, identified as Sachin Dasariya (36), committed the crime on May 20, 2021. According to ADGC Vijay Kushwaha, Dasariya forcibly took a 17-year-old girl from the area under Nawabad police station while she was returning from her coaching classes. He transported her to Delhi.
In the national capital, the accused held the victim captive at his brother's residence. During this period of captivity, which lasted for two weeks, he repeatedly raped and beat her. The ordeal began even earlier, as the victim's statement under Section 164 CrPC revealed Dasariya first took her to a relative's place in a village where he assaulted her before moving to Delhi.
Meanwhile, concerned by her disappearance, the victim's elder sister filed a missing person complaint. After two weeks, Dasariya brought the girl back to Jhansi and left her near her home.
Legal Proceedings and Verdict
Following a complaint, the police registered a case against Dasariya under stringent sections. He was booked under sections 363 (kidnapping), 366 (kidnapping to compel marriage), and 376(1) (rape) of the IPC, along with relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. He was initially sent to jail but later managed to secure bail.
The court relied heavily on the victim's powerful statement recorded before a magistrate, along with other corroborative evidence. Judge Ansari found the evidence compelling and found Sachin Dasariya guilty of the charges. The court sentenced him to ten years of rigorous imprisonment and levied a fine of Rs 65,000. In a significant rehabilitation order, the court directed that half of the fine amount (Rs 32,500) be paid to the survivor.
A Shocking Turn: The Murder of a Defence Lawyer
In a shocking twist to the case, Sachin Dasariya is also accused of a separate, grave crime committed while he was out on bail in the POCSO case. On August 5, he allegedly murdered his own defence lawyer, Bhanu Prakash Sirvariya.
Sirvariya, a retired ADGC, was living in a rented accommodation in the Talpura area and was representing Dasariya in the rape and abduction case. It is alleged that Dasariya harboured doubts about his lawyer's commitment, believing Sirvariya was not fighting his case properly. This suspicion allegedly led him to kill Sirvariya at his home.
Dasariya is now facing a separate trial for this murder case and remains in judicial custody. The two cases paint a picture of severe criminal conduct, from the sexual violence against a minor to an alleged act of fatal violence against his legal counsel.
The judgment from the Jhansi POCSO court underscores the judiciary's firm stance on crimes against children, even as the legal system concurrently grapples with the subsequent allegation of murder against the same convict.
