Excelsior Correspondent
LEH, Oct 26: Principal Sessions Judge Leh, Sanjay Dhar has awarded 10 years Rigorous Imprisonment and fine of Rs 10,000 to a resident of Udhampur district for committing rape with a pregnant woman.
The accused namely Rattan Singh, son of Shiv Nath of Gantwal, tehsil Chenani of Udhampur district was booked under Section 376 RPC vide FIR No.10/2013 of Police Station Leh. After completion of investigation into the case, police presented challan against the accused and the court of Principal Sessions Judge Leh convicted him.
When the case came up for arguments on the question of sentence, counsel for the accused contended that the accused has no criminal background and he is married person having a small child as such court must take a lenient view while awarding sentence to him. However, the Public Prosecutor for the State argued that accused has ravished a hapless woman, who was pregnant at the time of occurrence as such he doesn’t deserve any leniency.
After hearing both the sides, Principal Sessions Judge Leh observed, “the accused is proved to have raped the prosecutrix, who as per medical evidence on record, was pregnant by about four months”, adding “rape, by the nature of the offence, is an obnoxious act of the highest order. The physical scar of a woman may heal up but her mental scar will remain forever”.
“When a woman is ravished, what is inflicted, is not merely physical injury, but the deep sense of some deathless shame”, the court further observed, adding “while awarding sentence in a rape case, protection of society and stamping out proclivity must be the object of law which must be achieved by imposing appropriate sentence”.
Pointing towards the submission of counsel for the accused regarding lenient view, the Principal Sessions Judge said, “the common man will lose faith in courts because in cases like those relating to rape he understands and appreciates the language of deterrence than the reformative jargon”.
With these observations, court awarded 10 years Rigorous Imprisonment and fine of Rs 10000 to the convict. “In default of payment of fine, he will undergo simple imprisonment for a further period of three months. The period of custody already undergone by the accused will be set off against the sentence awarded to him”, the court said.
“In the event of recovery of fine, a sum of Rs 7000 will be paid to the prosecutrix by way of compensation”, the court directed.
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel