A Kerala court on Monday sentenced a 44-year-old man to 106 years in prison for raping and impregnating a 15-year-old mentally challenged girl in Idukki district. As the sentences will be served concurrently and the highest of the jail terms given to the man is 22 years, he will be serving as many years behind bars.
The court also imposed a fine of ₹ 60,000 on the man. If the convict does not pay the fine amount, he will have to undergo an additional 22 months of rigorous imprisonment.
The court ordered that if the accused pays the fine, the amount should be paid to the girl as compensation from the victim compensation scheme of the Idukki District Legal Services Authority.
The incident took place in 2022 when the accused, a native of Thrissur, had come to Adimali for work. He had been working together with the girl's mother in a hotel and, after becoming friendly with her, he stayed with them in her house.
When the girl's mother and siblings were not at home, the accused began sexually exploiting the girl. He had also threatened the girl, saying that he would kill her if she disclosed the incidents to them.
The incidents came to light when the mother brought the girl to Adimali Taluk Hospital due to physical difficulties, and the doctor found out that the girl was pregnant. The doctor reported the incident to the police.
The pregnancy of the girl was aborted at Idukki Medical College Hospital.
Subsequently, DNA tests were conducted on the medical samples of the aborted foetus of the girl and the accused, revealing that the father of the unborn child of the girl was the accused.
Devikulam Fast Track Special Court (POCSO) Judge Sirajuddin P A handed down varying sentences to the man, who was a friend of the victim's mother, under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for a total of 106 years, Special Public Prosecutor Smiju K Das said.