Cuttack: A special POCSO court here on Wednesday sentenced a 26-year-old man to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 13-year-old girl.
The presiding judge, Sunita Pattanaik, also imposed a fine of Rs 33,500 on the man while convicting him under different sections of the IPC for wrongful restraint and voluntarily causing hurt, and the POCSO Act for raping a minor girl below 16 years of age.
The judge also stated that the entire fine amount, if realised, should be used in paying compensation to the victim. "Further, the victim is entitled to compensation under the Odisha Victim Compensation Scheme," the judge said, recommending to the District Legal Services Authority (Cuttack) for payment of compensation, "within the framework of the scheme for the injury sustained by the victim during the violence upon her."
The accused was in jail as an undertrial prisoner when the judgment was pronounced on Wednesday. The incident occurred on June 23, 2023. The victim's mother lodged the FIR the next day. The man, from the same area, was arrested on June 30, 2023. Although the chargesheet in the case was filed on Aug 22, 2023, the charges were framed on Febr 28, 2024.
The period already undergone by the convict as an undertrial prisoner (one year, four months, and six days) will be set off from the 10-year sentence, the judge specified in the order.