Maharashtra: Man gets 10-year rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting minor relative

A court in Maharashtra's Thane district has sentenced a 35-year-old man to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting and torturing his wife's minor sister.

Special Judge V V Virkar, hearing cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, in the order passed on May 6 also imposed a fine of Rs 8,000 on the accused. Special Public Prosecutor Rekha Hiwrale told the court that the sister of the victim, then aged 17, asked her to stay at her place in Dahisar area of neighbouring Mumbai for some days in April 2018.

When the victim's sister went out for work, the latter's husband sexually assaulted her on different occasions. The accused also beat up the victim with iron pipe and sticks and hit her on the back with hot tongs.

The victim later escaped from the house when the couple was asleep and arrived at a church, from where she got help to go to a police station to lodge a complaint against the man, the prosecution told the court.

The court convicted the accused under Indian Penal Code Sections 377 (whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and relevant provisions of the POCSO Act.