The Special Court for SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act Cases, Kottarakkara on Saturday sentenced a 46-year-old man to rigorous life imprisonment for raping a woman belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) community. The convict has been identified as Viswambharan of Vettikkavala, Kollam.
The incident happened on October 22, 2017. The survivor, a 40-year-old uneducated and malnourished woman, was cutting grass for her goats from the side of a canal near her home when the accused sexually assaulted her.
Besides awarding the life term under Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST (POA) Act, Special Judge R. Jayakrishnan sentenced the convict to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 376 (1) (rape) of the Indian Penal Code and a one-year rigorous imprisonment under Section 3(1)(w) (i) of the SC/ST (POA) Act. The sentences shall run concurrently.
Stating that the accused does not deserve any leniency, the judge observed, “the offence committed by the accused is a heinous crime against a poor unmarried lady who belongs to the SC community. It is an evil of the society. It should be curbed and dealt with seriously.”
The court ordered the convict to pay a fine of ₹1.1 lakh. If the fine is remitted or recovered, the same should be given to the survivor as compensation. If the convict fails to pay the fine, he should serve additional time in prison, reads the judgement. The judge noted that the survivor in the case was entitled to get compensation under the Victim Compensation Scheme.
The case was registered in Kottarakkara police station. Special Public Prosecutor G.S. Santhosh Kumar represented the prosecution side.
