NEW DELHI: A city court has sentenced a juvenile to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping two girls, aged five and six, in 2017, and calling the emotional and psychological impact on the survivors as “horrific memories”.
The case involved a child in conflict with law, who was convicted of rape and aggravated penetrative sexual assault.
Initially, the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) determined that the accused, who was over 16 years of age at the time, should be tried as an adult due to the severity of the crime. The case was subsequently transferred to a special court. During the proceedings, Special Public Prosecutor Vineet Dahiya highlighted the heinous nature of the crime.
In the order passed on Wednesday, Additional Sessions Judge Amit Sahrawat stated that while the accused was a “victim of bad society”, the crime’s severity could not be overlooked. It said that each survivor’s case would be treated as a separate offence, given that rape is a violation of an individual’s dignity and bodily autonomy.
The court sentenced the juvenile to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment for each offence, totaling 20 years. The court also awarded `10.5 lakh in compensation to each survivor, acknowledging the lifelong trauma inflicted on them.
The judge emphasised that the seriousness of the crime required a strong sentence to address the trauma suffered by the survivors.