Ghaziabad: A Ghaziabad court on Wednesday awarded 20 years imprisonment to a 25-year-old man who entered his neighbour’s house and raped a 15-year-old girl while her parents were away on the night of October 20, 2020.
A case was registered against the convict on October 21, 2020, under sections for rape, house trespass, and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso) at Muradnagar police station. The FIR also included provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
“The court held the accused Shahnawaz (single name) guilty and awarded him 20 years of imprisonment,” Harish Sharma, special public prosecutor (Pocso), told HT on Thursday.
Special judge (Pocso) Neeraj Gautam also slapped a fine of ₹50,000 on Shahnawaz.
The girl’s father, in his testimony before the court, said that upon hearing the cries for help, several neighbours arrived and nabbed the convict before handing him over to the police.
The girl, in her statements before a magistrate, confirmed that Shahnawaz raped her on the night of the incident.
“The incident occurred around 10:30 pm, and my parents were not at home. My other siblings were sleeping. I did not know Shahnawaz and learned his name at the police station. Shahnawaz assaulted me,” the survivor said.
The court, however, stated that the prosecution could not provide documentary evidence regarding the sections of the SC/ST Act; therefore, the charges could not be proved.