Man who raped 6-year-old girl at age of 17 sentenced to life imprisonment in Gurugram

A 23-year-old man who raped a six-year-old girl in Gurugram in 2019 when he was 17 years, four months and 20 days old, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the rest of his natural life on Saturday, police said on Monday.

On March 27, the special court of additional sessions judge Ashwani Kumar Mehta in Gurugram convicted the man under Section 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, and fined him ₹25,000.

“On August 20, 2019, the girl was alone at home when the convict, a neighbour, sneaked in, locked the house from the inside and brutally raped her,” said Sandeep Kumar, public relations officer of the Gurugram police.

Sometime later, the victim’s uncle arrived at the house and found the main door locked. “He kept knocking on the door for several minutes. The convict finally opened the door and fled. The victim’s uncle raised the alarm and informed the girl’s mother, who immediately came home,” he added. Locals nabbed the convict on the spot and handed him over to the police.

The juvenile justice board and, clinical psychologist conducted several hearings and established in separate assessments that the child-in-conflict with the law was physically and mentally capable and sound to commit the heinous offence and to understand its consequences.

“Finally, the board, on February 22, 2021, ruled that the child-in-conflict with the law should be tried as an adult. The case was transferred to the special court under Pocso Act,” he said.