Baripada: A special POCSO court-cum- court of Additional District and Sessions judge sentenced Tuesday a 62-year-old man to 10 years rigorous imprisonment (RI) after convicting him of rape of a 2.5-year-old girl. In addition to the jail term, judge Sumita Jena also slapped a penalty of Rs 10,000 on the convict. In default, the convict has to undergo an additional six months of imprisonment. The convict was identified as Dargha Barada, a native of Khairapala village under Jamda police limits in Mayurbhnaj district. The verdict was delivered after examining the statements recorded by 13 witnesses, medical report and the police charge sheet
According to the case diary, the incident occurred when the minor victim attended a marriage feast with her parents, March 14, 2014. Barada took the girl from her parents to an isolated place and raped her. Family members searched for the girl but failed to trace her. On the following day locals noticed the girl lying in pool of blood and informed her family members.
Family members and villagers rushed her first to Rairangpur hospital and later shifted her to the PRM Medical College and Hospital in Baripada. Police arrested the accused following a complaint by the victim’s family members and produced him in court. Public prosecutor Abhinna Kumar Pattnaik pleaded the matter on behalf of the Odisha government.
