1 week Ago
Vadodara: A sessions court in Khambhat awarded a double-death sentence to a 30-year-old man who raped and murdered a seven-year-old girl six years ago. Categorising the case as ‘rarest of rare', the court of second additional sessions judge Praveen Kumar punished Arjun alias Dado Ambalal Gohel (Makwana). On Oct 28, 2019, the day of the Gujarati New Year, the girl's father registered a complaint that his daughter was missing.
The police later found her body behind a temple. A postmortem revealed that the victim was strangled to death after being brutally raped. "The accused was arrested within a day," Anand district superintendent of police (DSP) Gaurav Jasani told media persons on Friday.
He added that all the evidence was scientifically collected, statements of the witnesses were recorded by the investigators, and a chargesheet was filed within a month and a half. Advocate Raghuvir Pandya was appointed as special public prosecutor in the case. "This is the first incident in Anand district where a double-death sentence has been awarded," said Jasani.
The court ordered a compensation of Rs 13.50 lakh to the girl's family. The court held the accused guilty of crimes under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The court ordered death sentences both under section 302 of the IPC and section 6 of the POCSO Act. At the same time, the court ordered life imprisonment under section 376 (3) of the IPC and section 4 of the POCSO Act. Gujarat's junior home minister Harsh Sanghavi said, "The court's decision sends a clear message that such heinous crimes in Gujarat will not be tolerated.
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