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New Indian Express
2 hours ago
- New Indian Express
MP HC commutes death sentence of tribal youth in child rape case, citing lack of 'brutality', mitigating background
BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has commuted the death sentence of a 20-year-old tribal man convicted of raping and attempting to kill a four-year-old girl, reducing his punishment to 25 years of rigorous imprisonment. The decision was delivered by a division bench comprising Justices Vivek Agarwal and Devnarayan Mishra, who observed that while the act was undeniably brutal, it did not meet the threshold of "brutality" required for the death penalty under the "rarest of rare" doctrine. The case involved the convict, a 20-year-old from a Scheduled Tribe, who was found guilty by a trial court under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act), and sentenced to death. According to the prosecution, the convict entered the complainant's hut under the pretext of requesting a cot to sleep on, and later abducted and raped the minor victim from a nearby house during the night. He then left her in an unconscious state in a mango orchard, believing her to be dead. The High Court, while acknowledging the horrifying nature of the crime, noted: 'No doubt that appellant's act was brutal as he has committed rape upon the victim of four years and three months of age and after committing rape also throttled her treating her dead and thrown the victim in such a place where she could not be searched and left the spot but it is also clear that he has not committed brutality,' distinguishing between barbaric acts and acts of extreme cruelty or depravity. The bench considered several mitigating factors in its decision. The convict was described as an uneducated youth from a tribal community, whose parents never tried to educate or properly care for him. He left his home at an early age and was working in a roadside eatery to earn a living. There was no evidence of prior criminal conduct, and the court found no adverse reports regarding his behaviour. The bench further noted that the environment in which the convict grew up did not provide him with the proper atmosphere to develop. The High Court affirmed the conviction under Sections 363, 450, 307, and 201 of the IPC, but commuted the death penalty under Section 6 of the POCSO Act to 25 years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs. 10,000. In default of payment, the convict will serve an additional year of rigorous imprisonment. The decision reflects the court's view that, despite the gravity of the offence and the young age of the victim, the circumstances of the convict's background and the absence of extreme brutality did not justify the death penalty in this case.
Indian Express
8 hours ago
- Indian Express
‘Act brutal but not committed brutally': HC commutes death penalty in child rape case
The Madhya Pradesh High Court has commuted the death sentence awarded by a trial court to a man convicted of raping a four-year-old minor girl. A division bench, comprising Justices Vivek Agarwal and Devnarayan Mishra, observed in their order on June 19, 'No doubt that appellant's act was brutal as he has committed rape upon the victim of four years and three months of age and after committing rape also throttled her treating her dead and thrown the victim in such a place where she could not be searched and left the spot but it is also clear that he has not committed brutality.' According to the prosecution, the convict entered the complainant's hut and requested a cot to sleep on. Later that night, he allegedly opened the gate of a nearby house where the victim and her parents was staying, abducted and raped her. Thereafter, he allegedly left the child in an unconscious state in a mango orchard, believing her to be dead. The High Court was hearing a criminal appeal filed by the convict against a trial court judgment which found him guilty under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act). The high court acknowledged that the aggravating circumstance of this case was the age of the victim and the convict. The bench stated, 'There are aggravating circumstances that the victim was four years old and the rape was committed upon such a kid and offence was committed in such a way that the private part of the victim was torn and after committing the offence, the victim was thrown in the solitary place treating her that she had died.' However, the bench also took note of the fact that the convict, aged 20, is uneducated and belongs to the tribal community and his parents never tried to give him education and did not take proper care of him. Therefore, he left his house and was earning, living and working in a restaurant, the court said.
