Surat: 10 years in jail to father of three who raped a minor

SURAT: A 27-year-old man was sentenced to 10 years in jail by a local court here on Tuesday after being convicted of rape and sexual assault on a minor.
Convict Bunty Rajput, a father of three children, had taken the 14-year-old girl to Mumbai where he raped her multiple times.
The school girl was being subjected to sexual assault by the man since 2014 and only in August 2015 her mother came to know about the ordeal. An offence was registered in the case in Limbayat police station on August 25, 2015.
The court considered medical evidence and statement of the victim before announcing the judgement and quantum of punishment. "The convict got 10 years jail as per the maximum punishment limit in POCSO. After revision in punishments under POCSO the convict would have got life imprisonment but since the case is of 2015, he was awarded 10 years in jail," said Kishore Revaliya, public prosecutor.
Revaliya further added that the court took the fact seriously that the accused despite being a much married man raped a minor.
According to case details, the convict was the survivor’s neighbour in Limbayat. Later, after the minor's family moved to another place, he stayed in touch with the family. The minor's father had died a few years ago while her mother runs a tea stall. The convict used to meet the minor when she was alone at home and even used to take her out.
"The convict lured the minor into a relationship with him and took her to Mumbai where he raped her for six days," said the prosecutor. The crime came to light when the mother went to school to pick her daughter and the school principal informed her that she had come late to school.
After returning home, when she accosted her daughter about the reason behind reaching school late, the girl broke down and informed her about her relationship with Rajput. She also told about their frequent meetings in private. She further informed that the convict took her to Mumbai and raped her at different places. During investigation police nabbed the accused from the city.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)