Mumbai: A special court designated under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on Monday sentenced a 43-year-old man to ten-years of rigorous imprisonment for repeatedly raping his 11-year-old stepdaughter in 2019.
The family lived on the pavement in Azad Maidan police station limits. Special Public Prosecutor Geeta Sharma said the unemployed man would frequently quarrel with his wife, the victim’s mother, who worked as a sweeper. The sexual assaults on the child would take place when her mother would go to work and even when she had been admitted in hospital for childbirth.
The victim’s mother learnt about them from another woman, as both their daughters were friends and the minor had revealed her ordeal to her friend. When she asked her daughter about it, she got to know that her husband had threatened her daughter not to reveal it. The mother also got to know that the sexual assault continued after she had returned from hospital at night.
During trial, both the mother who lodged the complaint against her husband and the daughter deposed against the man.
The court also imposed a total fine of Rs. 17,000 on the man. If he defaults on paying it, he will have to serve extra time in prison. Of the fine amount, the court has ordered that Rs. 10,000 be given to the victim as compensation and also recommended compensation to the child under the Victim Compensation Scheme.
