GUWAHATI: A man was sentenced to life imprisonment by a court in Assam's Goalpara on Friday for raping and murdering a six-year-old girl from the Adivasi community in a paddy field in the district in 2018.
Special Judge S Dhar pronounced the judgment on Wednesday by convicting Srinush Orang alias Kalu Munda of the crime and pronounced the quantum of punishment on Friday.
Sanjay Sarma, advocate for the victim's family, said, "The court convicted him under charges of murder (302 IPC) and rape of a girl of less than 12 years of age (376AB IPC). The court has awarded rigorous imprisonment for life to him."
The incident took place in the Simlitola tea estate in the district under the Rangjuli police station. The girl had gone missing on December 1, 2018 while playing in a field. On December 3, her parents found her body in a paddy field after being informed by one Tamsher Ali, who was the first to see the body. The girl was lying in a half-naked condition with a gamosa fastened round her neck.
The father of the victim alleged in the FIR that Orang had offered his daughter sweets on December 1, 2018 and so he believed that Orang had committed the crime. Later, the police arrested him and submitted a charge-sheet against him.
The court has recommended compensation (if not awarded earlier) to the victim's family by the secretary of the District Legal Service Authority, Goalpara, under section 357A of the CrPC, under the victim compensation scheme formulated by the state government in such cases.
The court also informed the convicted person of his right to appeal against the judgment before the Gauhati High Court within a period of 30 days from the date of the judgment.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
