Thane Special Court Sentences Man to 20 Years Rigorous Imprisonment in Minor Rape Case

According to a report by 'The Hindu', a special court in Maharashtra's Thane district has sentenced a 35-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for the crime of repeatedly raping a minor girl on the promise of marriage. In this case, Additional Sessions Judge Premal S. Vitlani found the accused Srinivas Ashok Yelgonda guilty under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The court noted that there was an absence of violence and premeditation in the crime, which is considered a mitigating factor, but the law mandates a minimum sentence of 20 years. Giving details of the case, the prosecution stated that the victimized minor and the accused lived in the same housing society in Diva East. They became acquainted in June 2020 and subsequently developed a romantic relationship through phone chatting.

Special Public Prosecutor Rekha Hivrale told the court that in November 2020, the accused first sexually exploited the minor on the pretext of marriage in a neighbor's vacant flat and subsequently raped her multiple times. When the accused backed out of his promise to marry in February 2022, a dispute arose between the two and this entire atrocity came to light.

To prove the charges against the accused in this case, four government witnesses were examined, which included the victim herself, her mother, and a neighbor. The defense argued that there was an unnecessary delay in registering the FIR in 2022 and the exact dates of the repeated assaults were missing.

However, relying on the victim's birth certificate and school leaving certificate, the court verified that during most of the period of the atrocity, the victim was a 'child' under 18 years of age, due to which her legal consent had no value. The judge observed that the evidence on record clearly proved that the victim was under the delusion that the accused would marry her, due to which she kept this relationship and frequent physical intimacy hidden from her parents.

The court also stated that considering the social reputation, honor, and future of an unmarried young woman, the deliberation the family undertook before contacting the police is natural and understandable. The court also noted that no evidence of brutal force, physical injury, or premeditated sexual predation was found in this case.

The court clarified that due to being a minor under 18 years of age, the victim's consent becomes legally ineffective and conviction becomes inevitable, but the romantic background remains an important and compelling mitigating factor in sentencing. Finally, the court sentenced the convicted man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and also imposed a fine of ₹5,000 on him.