Kannur: A special fast-track court in Taliparamba sentenced a 25-year-old welder to 50 years of rigorous imprisonment on four counts of sexual assault on a 14-year-old girl, whom he met on Instagram and engaged in an affair with for two months in 2022.

Pramod Raj of Cherupuzha drove 20 km to the girl's house almost every other night in July and August 2022, and sexually assaulted her through the window grills, said public prosecutor Adv Sherymol Jose.

The crime came to light when the girl, then a Class 8 student, created an Instagram account in her friend’s name and uploaded inappropriate photographs of her friends. The school conducted an inquiry, identified the account’s creator, and informed her parents, said the prosecutor.

Initially, the complaint concerned only the fake Instagram account, but her parents, suspecting something was amiss, investigated further. The girl remained silent until her father’s elder brother, a retired police inspector, asked his daughter to speak with her, and she disclosed the affair with the welder, who was then 22 years.

Based on her statement, Alakode Police Station House Officer Vineesh M P registered an FIR and arrested Pramod Raj.

Relying on the girl's testimony and medical evidence, Special Judge R Rajesh found him guilty, sentencing him to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment each under Section 3(d) and Section 5(l) of the POCSO Act for repeated aggravated penetrative sexual assault, seven years for house trespass with intent to commit sexual assault under Section 450 of the IPC, and three years for digital stalking of a minor under Section 11(iv) of the POCSO Act. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 1.5 lakh across the four charges.

"The court was lenient, as the maximum punishment for penetrative and aggravated sexual assault on a girl under 16 is life imprisonment," said Adv Sherymol Jose. "The accused received only the minimum of 20 years for each count." As the sentences will run concurrently, Pramod Raj will serve 20 years in prison, she said.