Hoshiarpur court sentences rapist to 10 years jail in just nine days

In one of the fastest rulings in a trial court, a Hoshiarpur district court on Thursday sentenced a rapist to 10 years in jail in just nine days. The chargesheet in the case was filed by the police on January 2.

The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge J S Bhinder convicted Jai Prakash Diwedi alias Pawan Dubey — a resident of Uttar Pradesh — for the kidnapping and rape of a minor girl at Bhagvai village in Garhshankar sub-division in May, last year.

The court, while imposing a fine of Rs 90,000 on the convict, also ordered that a compensation of Rs 40,000 be paid to the victim under Section 357(b) of the CrPC. During court proceedings, the defence counsel had claimed that the victim had left with the accused on her own. But the court ruled that the victim being a minor, her consent, which was obtained under fear, was legally not tenable.

The victim, aged 17 at the time of the crime, used to work in a factory in Ludhiana when she was kidnapped. She was taken to New Delhi, where the accused raped her for 15 days. Diwedi also threatened to kill her younger brother if she told anyone about the incident.

According to the police, after keeping the girl with him for 15 days, the accused abandoned her at a bus stop in New Delhi. The girl managed to reach a local gurdwara, where a couple took her to the house of their landlords — Narvir Singh and Roshni — who helped the victim.

While initially the police had also booked Narvir and Roshni in the case, they were acquitted by the court. The victim had told the court that Narvir and Roshni had not only looked after her but also got her married to one Manjit Singh.

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