Indore court sentences man to life in prison for raping minor, forced abortion

In a landmark judgment, a special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) court in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, has sentenced a 20-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping a minor and forcing her to undergo an abortion. Abhishek, a resident of Raisen, was awarded the hefty punishment and a fine of Rs 4,000 under IPC sections 376(2)(N), 313, and sections 5(L) read with 6, and 5(J)(ii) read with 6 of the POCSO Act, as confirmed by District Prosecution Officer (DPO) Sanjeev Srivastava.

Revealing more details, Sanjeev Srivastava noted that the case came to light on March 20, 2021, when a sub-inspector of Azad Nagar police station recorded the victim’s statement at MY Hospital. The victim had said that she had known the accused, who lived in the same complex, for some time. He had allegedly lured her with promises of marriage, leading to multiple cases of sexual exploitation starting from August 2020.

When the victim discovered that she was pregnant, she informed Abhishek, who gave her abortion pills. The abortion, which she performed herself on March 3, 2021, led to serious health complications, due to which her parents took her to MY Hospital, where the whole story came to light. The case was registered under multiple IPC and POCSO sections, resulting in a life imprisonment for Abhishek after a rigorous judicial process.

(With input from agencies.)