Keonjhar: A local court here Monday sentenced a youth to 10 years imprisonment after he was convicted of raping a 10-year-old tribal girl. The additional district-cum-special POCSO judge S Tripathy also slapped a penalty of Rs 10,000 on Purna Mohanta, 35, in addition to the punishment. If he fails to pay up, Mohanta would have to undergo an additional one year of imprisonment. The judge pronounced the order after examining the statements recorded by 12 witnesses.
According to the case diary, the survivor was studying in a school operated by the state Tribal Welfare department. The incident occurred when she was tending a herd of goats at a nearby jungle December 12, 2015.
Mohanta outraged the modesty of the girl after tying her limbs. The survivor lodged a written complaint at Telkoi police station the next day. Police registered a case and arrested Mohanta. Since then the case has been going on and finally after more than six years, the victim has finally got justice for the ordeal she had to go through.
