Kerala man sentenced to three life imprisonments for raping granddaughter

The minor hanged herself to death

Kollam: A Kerala court on Friday sentenced a man to three life imprisonments for the rape of his minor granddaughter over eight years ago, which led to her hanging herself to death.

Kottarakkara Fast Track Special Court Judge Anju Meera Birla sentenced the maternal grandfather to three life imprisonments for various offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and said that it shall be “for the remainder of his natural life”.

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The court also sentenced him to 10 years for the offence under section 377 (unnatural offence) of the IPC and imposed a total fine of Rs 40,000 on the convict, public prosecutor Shugu C Thomas said.

The court, however, acquitted him for the offence under section 305 (abetment to suicide of a child) of the IPC. The issue came to light in 2017 when the maternal grandfather told police that the then 11-year-old victim hung herself due to the sexual abuse by her father.

The father of the girl, on the other hand, lodged a complaint against the grandfather, the prosecutor said.

Subsequently, the investigation revealed that the father had not been living in the same home as the child since 2015 after the victim’s mother lodged a domestic violence case against him.

The prosecutor said that the victim’s elder sister, during recording of her statement before a magistrate, had accused the maternal grandfather of raping her and her younger sibling.

It was based on this statement that the maternal grandfather was convicted in the case as the victim’s mother and elder sister turned hostile during the trial, the prosecutor said.

The court in its order also recommended that the victim’s mother be compensated in accordance with section 357A (victim compensation scheme) of the CrPC and the Kerala Victim Compensation Scheme.