Jalpaiguri, 24th June: A special POCSO court in Jalpaiguri has sentenced a youth to 22 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a minor schoolgirl while she was attending online classes.
Additionally, the court imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on the convict, with an additional one-year jail term in case of non-payment.
According to court sources, the incident took place in the New Jalpaiguri (NJP) police station area in 2020. Due to the pandemic lockdown, schools were closed, and the minor girl was studying online at home. At the time of the incident, her father was out for work, while her mother and brother had gone to a nearby grocery store for a short while. Taking advantage of the empty house, the accused youth entered the room and sexually assaulted the minor, later fleeing through the window.
When the minor’s mother returned home, she found her daughter in an unstable condition. The girl narrated the entire ordeal to her mother and later to her father. Following this, the minor’s parents lodged a written complaint at the NJP police station on August 1, 2020.
Based on the complaint, the police arrested the youth, though he later secured bail from the High Court. After a prolonged trial, the special POCSO court delivered its final verdict on Wednesday after hearing arguments from both sides, sentencing the accused to 22 years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine.