Foreign objects found in private parts, abdomen of 5-year-old girl, who was bitten, tortured and abandoned semi-conscious

Pune: Taking cognisance of the exceedingly brutal nature of his crime, a special court has sentenced a 28-year-old man to triple life imprisonment. The accused, identified as Rajesh Chouhan, had brutally raped a five-yearold girl in July 2013.

The court held Chouhan guilty under sections 376 (2) (F), 323 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under sections 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. It also slapped a fine of Rs 5,000 against him. His three life sentences will run concurrently.

According to the police, Chouhan, a native of Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, was living at Wadgaon Maval. He used to work at Gati Cargo company with the father of the victim, and the two families also lived in the same building at Wadgaon. On July 7, 2013, Chouhan asked the victim's father to help him with a problem in his gas stove.

While the father was busy trying to fix the stove, Chouhan asked the girl to accompany him to a neighbouring shop. But once they were outside, he took the girl to a deserted place and raped her. After committing the crime, he also warned her against telling anybody about the incident, threatening to kill her. He gagged her and punched her and dumped her in a semi-conscious state outside.

Meanwhile, the girl's parents were getting worried and had started searching the area. Since Chouhan was the last person to be seen with her, he was the prime suspect. When the girl was located, her parents found that she had been subjected to a brutal ordeal. Doctors at Sassoon hospital found foreign material in her private parts and in her abdomen. The convict had also bitten her cheeks and her necks, wounding her seriously.

The prosecution examined 13 witnesses during the trial, including the victim's mother and father. The victim herself narrated her ordeal. Dr Uma Wankhede from Sassoon, who operated upon the girl, said her private parts were torn considerably and were bleeding profusely. Judge AG Bilolikar, after hearing the arguments, sentenced Chouhan to life imprisonment on three counts, calling his act worse than a monster's.

"The court noted the fact that the accused took advantage of the close relations he enjoyed with the family and the girl's trust in him. Considering the barbaric nature of the crime, the court compared him to a monster," said public prosecutor Macchindra Gate. "The court also ordered the convict to sell his mobile handset in a public auction and credit the entire amount to the government treasury," he added.

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