Man gets 20-yr jail term for raping minor, wife gets 7 yrs for abetting crime

Keonjhar: A fast-track court in Keonjhar on Tuesday sentenced a 42-year-old man to 20 years of imprisonment for raping a 15-year-old girl, a relative, in 2021. The convict's wife, aged 30, was also sentenced to seven years in jail for helping him commit the crime.
Judge Vijay Kumar Mishra also fined the couple Rs 2,000 each. If he defaults, he would have to undergo additional jail term of six months. The woman will have to spend another two months in jail, if she fails to pay the fine.
According to case records, the convicted couple had taken the girl to his village for a tour during Raja festival in 2021. On the way, he raped her in another village. Since the couple didn't have any children, he promised to marry the minor girl. However, the girl's father brought her back home. A few days later, the convicted couple went to the girl's house and tried to take her to their home. However, the girl then informed her parents about her ordeal and later lodged a police complaint. Police registered a case and arrested the couple.
"The judge pronounced the sentences based on the statements of 22 witnesses and the police investigation report. He also recommended the district legal services authority to pay a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the girl," said special public prosecutor Gyanendranath Jena.