MAINPURI (UP): A 50-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the gang rape of a 14-year-old Dalit girl in Uttar Pradesh's Mainpuri district, while the co-accused has been acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence, a government lawyer said on Tuesday.
Special Judge (POCSO Act) Jahendra Pal Singh pronounced the sentence on Monday and also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict, state prosecutor Sheilendri Rajput told PTI.
According to the prosecution, the incident took place around 11 am on September 15, 2025, when the Class-9 student was out in a field with her cattle in the Kuraoli police station area.
The convict and the co-accused, Mahavir Yadav and Navi Chand Yadav, residents of Bichhiya Vikrampur, allegedly overpowered and raped the girl despite her resistance.
They threatened her against disclosing the incident to anyone, warning that her family would face dire consequences, the prosecution said.
Navi Chand Yadav also allegedly recorded a video of the assault.
The girl did not initially tell her family about her ordeal out of fear.
On September 17, 2025, her mother saw the video and subsequently got an FIR lodged against the two men at the Kuraoli police station, the prosecution said.
The two men also allegedly threatened the victim's family with caste-based abuses.
A medical examination corroborated the rape, and the police filed a chargesheet against the two men after completing the investigation.
Rajput said the prosecution presented witnesses and documentary evidence before the court.
After examining the evidence and hearing both sides, the judge convicted Mahavir Yadav for the crime and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
The court acquitted Navi Chand Yadav due to insufficient evidence.
