Berhampur (Odisha), February 18 A POCSO court in Berhampur, Odisha, on Wednesday sentenced a 28-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 13-year-old girl four years ago, a government counsel said.
Additional district judge and POCSO special court judge Pranati Pattnaik also imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on the convict, and failure to pay the amount would result in an additional six months in prison, special public prosecutor Narayan Panda said.
The court also directed the district legal service authorities to pay ₹3 lakh to the victim.
The entire fine amount will be paid to the survivor after recovery, the court ordered.
Police said the convict had taken the victim from her house on some pretext on May 30, 2022. Her family searched the area extensively but did not find her. On June 1, the convict called the victim's mother and said he had brought her to Bhubaneswar.
The victim's mother lodged an FIR at the Gangapur police station on the same day.
A POCSO Act was registered and the accused was apprehended on June 6, and the girl was rescued. The accused was on bail since August 28, 2023, police said.