Ghaziabad: A 60-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment for raping a four-year-old girl from his neighbourhood in 2022. The special Pocso court relied on the child’s consistent testimony through the years despite attempts by the accused’s family to claim that the complaint was the result of a financial dispute.Additional district and sessions judge Poonam-II also fined the man Rs 50,000, observing that the crime had created “a feeling of insecurity even among neighbours”. “This type of act creates a feeling of insecurity even towards people living in the neighbourhood,” the court observed.The case began with an FIR registered at Vijay Nagar police station on June 9, 2022, on a complaint by the girl’s father. He alleged that the previous afternoon, a neighbour had lured his daughter into his house while she was playing outside. When the child could not be found, her mother searched for her and went to the neighbour’s house. Looking through the door grille, she found her daughter lying semi-nude on a sofa, while the accused was standing nearby in a similar condition.Police initially registered an FIR under Section 354B of IPC, which deals with assault or criminal force against a woman with intent to disrobe her, and sections 9 and 10 of the Pocso Act. After recording the child’s statement, they added Section 376AB (rape) of IPC and sections 5 and 6 of the Pocso Act. A chargesheet was filed on June 29, 2022, and the court framed charges on Dec 7 that year. The accused denied the charges and sought a trial.The prosecution examined seven witnesses, including the child. The defence produced six, including the accused and his two married daughters, who claimed that their father had been falsely implicated in the case. Two neighbours also alleged that the complaint arose from a dispute over money.Special public prosecutor Satish Kumar Sharma, however, said the defence theory did not stand up to scrutiny. One daughter claimed the complainant and the accused were friends who had financial dealings, but the accused told the court he knew nothing about the girl’s family. The judge found the claim suspicious, noting that no witness had specified the amount allegedly borrowed, the date of the transaction or the dispute that supposedly followed.The child’s testimony became the decisive factor. The court found no material contradiction between her statement recorded before a magistrate under Section 164 of CrPC and her sworn testimony during trial. Her cross-examination also failed to reveal inconsistencies that could benefit the accused. Her mother’s account of finding the child in the accused’s house supported the prosecution’s case.Citing Supreme Court judgments, the court held that a credible and reliable account by a rape survivor can, by itself, sustain a conviction without further corroboration. It found the child’s evidence natural and consistent, convicted the man under Section 376AB of IPC and sentenced him under sections 5(M) and 6 of Pocso Act.
