14-year-old boy sentenced after 7-hour trial for rape of minor girl

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In an extra-ordinarily fast-paced trial, a juvenile court convicted and sentenced within seven hours a 14-year-old boy on charges of raping a minor girl.

Juvenile Justice Board Judge Tripti Pande awarded two years' imprisonment to the accused yesterday after wrapping up the trial in seven hours, government advocate Deependra Malu said today.

The crime took place on August 15 and the entire process, from registration of the case to pronouncement of judgement, was completed in five days, police said.

"The case diary was submitted in the court at 10.45 am yesterday and the judgement, after trial, was pronounced around 6 pm," Malu said.

"This is probably for the first time, after the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act came into effect in 2012, that a judgement in a rape case of a minor has been given in such a short duration," he said.

While pronouncing the sentence, Malu said, the judge observed, "The tendency of sexual offences against children is rising at a fast pace in society. To correct such a perverted psychological condition, this boy needs to be sent to two years' imprisonment."

The court ordered sending the boy to a remand home in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district for serving the sentence.

Ujjain Superintendent of Police Sachin Atulkar said the girl was playing with other children on August 15 at the residence of the accused at Ghatiya village in the district when the boy, taking advantage of the situation, raped her, The victim later disclosed the incident to her parents who filed a complaint at the Ghatiya police station.

Atulkar formed a team to probe the case and the boy was subsequently nabbed from his relative's place in Rajasthan and brought back to Ujjain.

The sentence was awarded under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the POCSO Act, he said.

Atulkar said the judgement will send a positive message among citizens.

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