Wife too jailed for abetting crime against handicapped
The Pune Sessions Court on Friday sentenced a man and his wife to
seven years of rigorous imprisonment each for raping his 23-year-old
physically handicapped sister and abetting the crime.
Principal District and Sessions Judge Anant Badar also imposed a
penalty of Rs500 each on the convicts who are labourers living in
Yerawada area. Additional public prosecutor SM Kalbhor examined five witnesses to prove the guilt of the convicted couple.
The crime took place in 2012 when the victim’s 25-year-old brother committed the incest rape with the help of his 20-year-old wife.
The crime took place in 2012 when the victim’s 25-year-old brother committed the incest rape with the help of his 20-year-old wife.
The judge stated in his order, “Brother is supposed to be the trustee
of his handicapped sister and accused persons have betrayed the trust by
taking undue advantage of the fact that she was all alone in their
company. The act of the accused person is betrayal of faith in humanity.
The offence of rape is grave by its nature and when the perpetrators of
such crime are brother and sister-in-law, then the sentence needs to
act as a deterrent.”
According to the prosecution case, the victim used to stay at home with
her unemployed brother and sister-in-law, while her mother and younger
sister used to go out for work. The victim’s sister-in-law was fed up
with the victim as she did not do any work. To teach her a lesson, she
instigated her husband to rape her and during the act she used to gag
the victim with dupatta. The man threatened the victim at knifepoint to
not disclose the incident.
Unable to bear the trauma, the victim narrated the incident to her younger sister who alerted the mother who drove the convicts out of the house. Yet the brother would come home and threaten the victim.
Unable to bear the trauma, the victim narrated the incident to her younger sister who alerted the mother who drove the convicts out of the house. Yet the brother would come home and threaten the victim.
Fed up with his constant threats, the victim lodged a complaint with
the Yerawada police station on February 3, 2012. The duo was arrested
the next day and charged with section 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural
offences) and 109 (abetment) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
The convicts’ lawyers took a defence that as the accused had refused to
give money to the husband of his eldest sister for purchasing a flat,
he has been implicated in a false case. However, the court relied on the
victim’s testimony and medical report, which stated she was raped, to
convict the duo.
Source : D.N.A , 20th July 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment