BENGALURU: A city court has convicted a 49-year-old man of sexually assaulting a minor, and sentenced him to five years of rigorous imprisonment.Ganjendra sexually assaulted the girl, who was his neighbour, on February 5, 2018, when she was returning home from tuition classes. Konanakunte police submitted a chargesheet against Gajendra, seeking conviction under the POCSO Act and Sections of the IPC. The prosecution furnished medical evidence and witness statements to prove that Gajendra assaulted the minor, who was a Class 3 student and an eight-year-old then.
The defence submitted that the charges had been fabricated as the minor’s family had falsely implicated him in a land dispute. The defence also submitted that Gajendra could not have committed any offence against the minor as she was like his child, requesting the court to show leniency.However, after taking the survivor’s account into consideration, corroborated by medical evidence, the 53rd Additional City Civil and Sessions Special Court pronounced him guilty.
While awarding the sentence, Judge SH Pushpanjali Devi observed, “If the Court considers these type of offences committed against the minor child in a lighter view, it will definitely give the wrong signal to society.”The court sentenced him to five years of RI for offences under the POCSO Act, one year simple imprisonment (SI) for wrongful confinement, and three years SI for outraging the modesty of a woman. The court also ordered that the survivor be paid a compensation of Rs 3 lakh.