The Special Judge, Fast Track Court No 1, Manipur on Monday sentenced a school van driver, a rape accused to nine years, one month and 16 days of rigorous imprisonment under section 6 of POCSO Act and fine of Rs 10,000.
Accused Irom Rakesh @ Naoba was arrested in connection with an alleged sexual assault on a five-year-old, one of the passengers of the school van, on April 2, 2018. He was in judicial custody since April 4, 2018 but released on bail on February 18, 2019.
During the sentence hearing, counsel for the offender submitted that the accused is a young person and prayed for leniency while special PP submitted that the victim was a child of tender age and just beginning her schooling. Hence, the PP prayed for exemplary punishment.
The court, considering the age of the offender, nature of the offence and also the trauma faced by the victim, sentenced the offender to under rigorous imprisonment for 10 years under section 6 of POCSO Act, 2012 and fine Rs 10, 000.
While the offender had already undergone detention for a period of ten months and 14 days, the period of detention undergone by the offender set off under section 428 CrPC was adjusted to nine years, one month and 16 days.
The court also considered the type of abuse, gravity of the offence and the severity of the mental physical harm suffered by the child victim and the financial condition of the child and her family and directed that a sum of Rs 1 lakh be paid to the victim child in addition to the interim compensation already paid to the child victim.
The compensation of Rs 1 lakh is to be paid by the state government from the victim compensation fund or other scheme or fund established by it under section 357A CrPC or any other laws by the state government within thirty days, stated the court.
