Representational image. Source - Internet

A court of special judge in Golaghat recently held two persons guilty of raping two minors in two separate incidents. The court of special judge Satyajit Khound convicted the two persons under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) 2012 and of the Indian Penal Code.

Pronouncing the judgement on March 23, the court of special judge sentenced Munu Rai to undergo rigorous imprisonment for seven years and to pay a fine of one thousand. If he fails to pay the fine he shall have to undergo simple imprisonment for another month.

In another judgement on March 27, the special court sentenced Upen Nath to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years and to pay a fine of one thousand and in default of payment of fine he shall have to undergo simple imprisonment of another one month.

The court has also directed the district legal service authority to pay compensation of forty thousand and thirty thousand to the victims within thirty days from the date of the judgement.

The father of the first victim lodged an FIR before the in-charge of Kamarbandha police outpost alleging that on August 8, 2016, the accused Munu Rai taking advantage of the absence of the parents of the victim entered into her house and raped her. The victim was thirteen years old at that time. A case under sections 448/376 of Indian Penal Code read with section 4 of POCSO Act was registered against the accused vide Golaghat police station case no 604/16.

In the second incident, accused Upen Nath on July 7, 2013 gagged the mouth of the victim, who was nine year old at that time, and raped her. Nath also warned the victim not to report the same to anybody. On the same day the father of the victim lodged an FIR before the Barpathar police station against the accused. After absconding for five months, the accused surrendered himself before the sub-divisional judicial magistrate at Sarupthar in January, 2014.

Ritupallab Saikia is Northeast Now Correspondent in Golaghat. He can be reached at: [email protected]