A local court in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram district on Wednesday sentenced a government employee to 17 years of rigorous imprisonment after he was found guilty of sexually abusing his 10-year-old daughter. The culprit, who is a deputy tehsildar, was also slapped with a fine of Rs 16,50,000. He will have to spend two more years in prison if he fails to pay the fine.
The order was pronounced by Justice K V Rajaneesh of Thiruvananthapuram Principal POCSO Court.
The court handles cases charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The court observed that the sexual abuse of a girl by her own father, who is supposed to protect her, was a grave crime and the culprit did not deserve any mercy.
The court directed the state government to pay the survivor girl the compensation she deserves legally.
The case, registered by the Pangode police, dates back to 2009. According to the prosecution, the man raped his daughter when the girl was sleeping. The girl revealed the incident to her teachers who in turn alerted the police. The charge sheet was submitted by Crime Branch DySP A Pramod Kumar.
As many as 19 witnesses were tried and 21 documents were produced before the court as evidence. Public prosecutor Kattayikonam J K Ajith Prasad and lawyers V Z Hashmi and V C Bindu appeared for the prosecution.
