Delhi court sends man, who ferried minor to school and back home, to 20 years in jail for raping her

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court has sentenced a man, who ferried a minor girl to school and back home, to 20 years rigorous imprisonment (RI) for allegedly repeatedly raping her in 2018 and observed he had betrayed the trust of the minor survivor's family.

Additional Sessions Judge Balwinder Singh was hearing arguments on sentencing against the 44-year-old driver, who was convicted under Section 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The court underlined he did not deserve sympathy or leniency as he had "breached social values and morals".

In a verdict dated October 19, the court observed, "The victim in the instant case is a minor child, who was only about 3.5-years of age when the offences in question were committed between August, 2018, and October 23, 2018, and at the time, the convict, a married man, had sufficient maturity of understanding the nature and consequences of his act."

The court further observed despite his age, the man did not hesitate to commit the "heinous offence" on the minor, whose family had entrusted him with the child’s custody to school and back.

"The convict has exploited her (survivor’s) innocence and vulnerability. She was barely a child of 3.5 years of age, however, instead of showing any love, affection and protection to the victim, the convict, on the contrary, made her a victim of lust," it noted.

The court found it a "clear case" of betrayal.

Apart from POCSO law, the man was convicted under Section 376 AB (punishment for committing rape on a woman under 12 years of age) of the Indian Penal Code.

In addition to the 20-year RI, the court saddled the convict with Rs 50,000 fine and awarded Rs 1.2 lakh compensation to the minor survivor.