Judge K G Paldewar classified the case as one of the “rarest of rare” crimes
Nashik : A fast-track special court in Malegaon on Friday sentenced a 24-year-old man to death for the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl, nearly 11 months after the crime triggered widespread outrage across Maharashtra . The court held the accused guilty under sections 137(2) (kidnapping), 64 (rape), 64(2)(i), 65(2) (rape of a girl under 12), 66 (rape causing death), 103(1) (murder) and 238(a) (causing disappearance of evidence) of BNS, along with sections 4 (penetrative sexual assault) and 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of Pocso Act. The death sentence has been awarded under Section 66 of BNS and will be subject to confirmation by Bombay High Court. The convict was also sentenced to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 2,000 each under sections 137(2) (kidnapping) and 238(a) (causing disappearance of evidence).
Malegaon taluka police had registered a case of kidnapping, rape and murder under relevant provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act. In view of the public outcry, state govt had appointed senior advocate Ujjwal Nikam as special public prosecutor.
The court said no separate sentence was required under the Pocso Act in view of the punishment imposed under Section 66 of BNS.
Advocate Nikam told TOI, “A group of seven- to eight-year-old children saw the accused take the victim with him on the pretext of giving her a chocolate. Less than two hours later, another person saw the suspect dump something wrapped in cloth near a mobile tower close to his house. Her body was later found near the same mobile tower. ”