The Fast Track Mahila Court in Tirupur on Thursday awarded life term to a 67-year-old man from Udumalpet who raped and impregnated a 14-year-old girl last year.
Sessions judge J.P. Jayanthi sentenced Rajan, a resident of Sarkarpudur near Udumalpet, for the sexual assault on the girl, who gave birth to male baby. The sentence was awarded after the court through a DNA test confirmed that Rajan is the father of the baby delivered by the survivor.
Rajan, a daily wage labourer, had raped the girl from his neighbourhood on several occasions for around six months.
The sexual assault came to light when the girl, a class IX student then, was conceived. Rajan was arrested after the girl’s mother lodged a complaint with the All Women Police Station, Udumalpet, in June 2017.
He was arrested for offences under various sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. During the course of the investigation, the police, on the direction of the court, conducted a DNA test which proved the fatherhood of the baby. The court also awarded a fine of ₹20,000 to Rajan.
12-yr jail term
In another judgement, the same court awarded 12 years of imprisonment to a 67-year-old man from Uthukkuli in Tirupur who sexually assaulted a 12-year-old girl in 2017.
Judge Ms. Jayanthi sentenced Karuppan, a daily wage worker hailing from Kasthuripalayam near Uthukkuli, to undergo the imprisonment apart from a fine of ₹20,000.
Karuppan had sexually assaulted the girl, a class VII student then, when she was alone at home after returning from school on February 17, 2017. Neighbours, who heard the girl’s cries, rescued her and handed him over to the All Women Police Station, Kangeyam. He was arrested for offences under various sections of POCSO Act.
The two convicts were lodged in Coimbatore Central Prison.