SAMBALPUR: The special POCSO court in Sambalpur on Tuesday awarded death sentence to a man for raping and murdering an eight-year-old girl at Kasada village within Jamankira police limits in 2022.
Special Judge (POCSO) Abhilash Senapati also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the 40-year-old convict, Prasanta Baghar. The crime had taken place on March 25, 2022.
According to reports, the minor had gone to a field near Kasada village to answer nature’s call when Baghar reached the spot and forcibly took her away to a secluded place.
After raping the girl, the convict beheaded her with an axe. He returned to the village with the severed head and roamed around holding it in one hand and the axe in the other. Baghar even walked up to a tube-well and washed the head.
On seeing the ghastly scenes, villagers went inside their homes in fear. However, Baghar’s wife confronted him for the heinous act which led to a scuffle between the couple. During the fight, the convict scared off his wife by showing her the axe before falling unconscious near the tube well.
Subsequently, villagers informed police who reached Kasada and arrested Baghar. Later, the deceased girl’s father complained with the police based on which a case was registered and an investigation launched.
Police filed the chargesheet under sections 302 and 376 of the IPC besides section 6 of POCSO Act. During the trial, the court examined 25 witnesses and found Baghar guilty of all offences. Considering the heinous nature of the crime, the court ordered the convict to be hanged till death.
Public prosecutor Santosh Panda said a 50-page chargesheet was filed in connection with the case. “The judgment will be reviewed by the high court which will decide whether to uphold the death sentence after examining the case records and appeal,” he added.