Bhubaneshwar: A man was sentenced to life imprisonment, on Monday, for raping his 12-year-old daughter. He was convicted under the stringent Pocso (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences)Act.
Kiran Kumar Pradhan, Additional Districts and Sessions judge found the convict guilty. The rape took place 4 years ago, when the minor filed a complaint against her father. The prosecution lawyer Dyutish Achrya asserted, “This is a rare case and the court has set an exemplary punishment’.
The court has additionally taken into account the witness testimonies and substantiating evidence, ordering the convict to serve life imprisonment. the District Legal Services Authority offered the minor with a stringent compensation of Rs 10 lakh.
The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012, aims to protect children from offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment and pornography and provides for establishment of special courts for trial of such offences and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
India has one of the largest populations of children in the world – Census data from 2011 shows that India has a population of 472 million children below the age of eighteen. Protection of children by the state is guaranteed to Indian citizens by an expansive reading of Article 21 of the Constitution of India and also mandated given India’s status as a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
According to a survey, conducted by National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB), child rape cases ha rise of 96 percent in recent years. In 2022, 38,911 cases of child rape and penetrative assaults were registered, marking a significant increase from 36,381 cases registered in 2021.
