23-year-old gets 15-year jail for raping minor he befriended

MUMBAI: A special POCSO court on Tuesday convicted and sentenced a now 23-year-old man to 15 years' imprisonment for raping and impregnating a 15-year-old girl in 2015.
The accused had befriended the survivor two years before the incident. Her mother found out when she realised that the girl was pregnant.

The survivor was one of the witnesses who deposed before court, special public prosecutor Vinod More said. The survivor said she was acquainted with the accused and had invited him home as a friendly gesture. She said that the accused, however, beat her up and raped her. The survivor said he threatened her and raped her on other occasions too.

She said that when she became pregnant, he assaulted her again and forced to go to the doctor but she refused.

The accused then left and had no contact with her. The survivor said that later her mother took her to hospital, where it was found that she was pregnant. She said that she told her mother about the accused.

The survivor said that her mother then filed a police complaint and the accused was arrested. She said that she gave birth to her daughter in 2015.