Thane, 4 April

A special court in Maharashtra's Thane district has sentenced a man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 13-year-old neighbour in 2021.

Special judge D S Deshmukh on Thursday found the accused, a resident of Kalwa, guilty of charges under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Judge Deshmukh sentenced the accused to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on him.

Special public prosecutor Rekha Hiwrale informed the court that on the afternoon of 17 August, 2021, the girl was playing outside her house when the accused gagged her, dragged her into his house and raped her after threatening her.

Eight prosecution witnesses, including the girl and her mother, were examined during the trial.

Hiwrale said the judge has directed that the fine money, if recovered, be paid to the girl as compensation and referred the case to the DLSA for payment of appropriate compensation.