A special court in Kolhapur on May 8 convicted and sentenced a casual worker to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for repeatedly raping his stepdaughter over a period of six years, starting when she was 10 years old and studying in Std V.
Victim's Courage and Court Observations
The court noted that the girl, fed up with continuous sexual exploitation and threats from her stepfather, even contemplated suicide but abandoned the thought after recalling school teachings that suicide is not a solution. Instead, she approached the Juna Rajwada police station to report her ordeal. As the crime occurred under the Karveer police station jurisdiction, she was directed there, leading to an FIR on July 5, 2019, and the stepfather's arrest the following day.
Legal Proceedings and Conviction
The court found the accused guilty under IPC sections 376(3) (rape of a girl under 16) and 506 (criminal intimidation), as well as sections 3, 4, 5, and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The court preferred to convict under IPC provisions. The accused has been in custody since July 6, 2019, and will receive set-off for time served.
Special Judge Kavita Agrawal observed: "In the present case, an innocent child became the victim of the accused stepfather's lust, which shows grave mental depravity. This incident will have a devastating effect on the child's psychology and emotional well-being. In view of my findings, the prosecution has proved the case of rape and aggravated sexual assault on the minor victim beyond reasonable doubt, and hence the accused is required to be convicted."
Evidence and Sentencing
The stepdaughter had written her feelings on school notebook pages, which were confirmed by a handwriting expert. Assistant Public Prosecutor Pratibha Jaykar Jadhav, who led the prosecution, stated: "The chits on which the victim herself wrote down everything that happened to her, along with medical examination proving sexual assault, provided strong evidence for the court to grant the sentence."
