Couple gets 20 years in jail for ‘abetting sexual assault’ of minor cousin
The court also convicted the 32-year-old accused, Dilip Patel, for the same crime and gave him the same punishment. Patel had allegedly raped the minor girl after she was taken to him by her cousin and her husband.
The 25-year-old cousin of the minor girl and her 30-year-old husband were convicted under Section 17 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. IN A rare conviction, a woman and her husband were sentenced to 20 years in jail for allegedly abetting the sexual assault of her minor cousin. The court also convicted the 32-year-old accused, Dilip Patel, for the same crime and gave him the same punishment. Patel had allegedly raped the minor girl after she was taken to him by her cousin and her husband.
The 25-year-old cousin of the minor girl and her 30-year-old husband were convicted under Section 17 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The section has provisions for punishment to whoever abets any offence under the Act. The couple was also convicted under Section 366A (procuration of minor girl) of the Indian Penal Code.
However, the three accused were acquitted of charges of trafficking. According to the submissions made by Special Public Prosecutor Veena Shelar, on August 2, 2020, the victim’s cousin came to her home and talked about getting her married. The victim’s mother told her that she was still a minor. The cousin, however, said a man named Dilip Patel was ready to marry her.
The cousin and her husband then said they wanted to take her to meet Patel’s mother and took her to Borivali. They went to Patel’s room and later left, saying they wanted to meet his mother. Later, only Patel returned and when the victim asked about her cousin, he told her that they had left for their home as it was late. After serving her dinner, Patel allegedly sexually assaulted her. When she resisted, he told her that he had paid Rs 2 lakh to her cousin for her. The victim also said in her statement that when she had raised an alarm by shouting to get away from him, a man had knocked on the door but Patel told him that it was his personal matter.
The next day, Patel took the victim to meet his mother. She called her mother from there and told her about the incident. Later, her cousin and her husband came to pick her up. Subsequently, the victim’s mother filed a complaint with the police.
The accused had claimed that they were falsely implicated as her mother had taken a loan and needed money. The prosecution had argued that since the victim was taken to the accused by her cousin and her husband, their complicity in the crime was established.
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