Mumbai man gets 15 years in jail for raping minor

A 23-year-old man was sentenced to 15 years in jail last week for raping a four-year-old girl in a public toilet.  (Representational)

A 23-year-old man was sentenced to 15 years in jail last week for raping a four-year-old girl in a public toilet. In 2014, when the incident occurred, the victim’s mother, who had gone to fetch water nearby, rushed to the toilet after hearing her daughter scream and found the accused with her. She began beating him with a bucket but the accused managed to run away. An FIR was registered at the Sakinaka police station. He was subsequently arrested and a case under the POCSO Act was registered against him.

During the trial, the accused claimed that the complaint was filed with ulterior motives. The court, however, said that evidence of the victim, who deposed when she was eight, was reliable. “Looking into the age of the victim at the time of the commission of offence and even at the time of evidence, it is very difficult to tutor her,” the court said.