Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP) 

Mangaluru, Aug 23: In a case pertaining to rape of minor girl, the second additional district and sessions court, which also is the special court for Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act cases, sentenced the accused to ten years of rigorous imprisonment, besides imposing fine on him. This judgement is considered unique as the affected girl, her parents and neighbours turned hostile during the course of the trial and gave adverse statements. The judge relied on the statements of the doctors and the investigating officer and also DNA report. 

The victim of the incident was a 13-year-old high school student, who is native of Guntugola village of Lingasugur taluk in Raichur district. The person found guilty and sentenced happens to be Nagappa (25) from Neerude in Muchcharu village in the taluk. Nagappa had been accused of raping the said minor girl and impregnating her. 

Nagappa had visited the house of the girl when she was alone at 7.15 am on April 21, 2016, and raped her. He was accused of repeatedly visiting her house thereafter and raping her thereafter. After the girl became sick, the parents took her to the doctor, who found that she had turned pregnant. 

As the girl identified the culprit, her parents filed complaint in Bajpe police station. The pregnancy got aborted when in the fourth month. The DNA test of the foetus was performed and Nagappa was identified as the parent. The police inspector of Bajpe station T D Nagaraj had completed the investigation and filed charge sheet. 

Judge of the second additional district and special POCSO court, B R Pallavi, who took up the hearing, concluded that the charges against the accused were proved and awarded ten years of rigorous imprisonment to Nagappa besides imposing on him a fine of Rs 5,000. 

Vankataramana Swamy C had represented the prosecution in the case. 

In this case, no compensation was awarded to the girl as she and her parents adduced evidence against the prosecution. A total of 19 witnesses were examined in this case. At the last stage, the girl, her parents, and neighbours contradicted their earlier statements. The court mainly relied on the DNA report and statements of the doctor who checked the girl, and the statement of the investigating officer when arriving at the conclusion that the accused was guilty of the offence.