Bokaro Man Who Raped Step Niece Sentenced To 30 Years Imprisonment

Bokaro Man raped niece: In the Bokaro district of Jharkhand, a local court granted 30 years of rigorous imprisonment to a 29-year-old man on Wednesday, August 4. He was held guilty of raping his minor step niece for about two months last year. Due to the COVID-19 imposed lockdown, the girl's parents were stuck in Uttar Pradesh at that time.

Janardan Singh, Special judge of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court fined the man Rs 1 lakh after a trial that lasted  6 months. Special public prosecutor SK Jha said that the court held the accused guilty of the crime under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and awarded 30 years of rigorous imprisonment to him. "Ansari has also been held guilty under sections 376 (2) of IPC and 8 of POCSO," he added.

According to the prosecution, the teenager was staying at her uncle's home in Bokaro, Jharkhand during the lockdown. Her parents were in Uttar Pradesh. They got stuck there due to the lockdown declared in March, 2020. The 17-year-old girl claimed that one day, when there was no one else at home, her uncle intoxicated her by offering her a cold drink mixed with sedatives and raped her. He reportedly threatened her with dire consequences. "It was only when her father and stepmother returned home that she narrated her ordeal following which a complaint was filed with the police," said Jha.

Similar incident

In a similar incident that took place in Bhopal, a six-year-old girl was allegedly raped by her uncle and grandfather in the presence of her toddler brother. Her maternal uncle lured them to his home on the pretext of giving them some snacks. However, on reaching there, he and her maternal grandfather sexually assaulted her and gave her Rs 20 to not disclose what happened. After the minor girl's mother noticed her strange behaviour, she asked her to open up about what had happened. Both the men were charged under POCSO Act and IPC. Read more here.