The Bombay high court has upheld the life sentence awarded to a labourer who raped and murdered a minor girl in the neighbouring Thane district in February 2007.

A division bench of justices VK Tahilramani and VL Achliya upheld the life sentence of Arvind Yadav, observing that the prosecution has proved the victim was last seen with the accused.

The HC was hearing an appeal filed by Yadav challenging the life sentence awarded to him by a sessions court for the rape and murder of the six-year-old girl.

According to the prosecution, on February 23, 2007 the convict, who worked as a mason in a construction site in Thane, took the girl with him under the pretext of buying her biscuits and chocolates.

When the girl and Yadav did not return even after a few hours, the parents went in search of the duo. The girl's body was found in a nearby hillock. A case was registered and the accused was arrested from his house nearby on the same day.

The high court, after going through medical evidence, noted that the victim was raped and sexually assaulted before being murdered. "We have no hesitation to hold that the prosecution has fully established that the deceased had met with a homicidal death. The prosecution has also established that the victim was raped before she was murdered," the court said.

The bench observed that the whole case against the accused person was based on circumstantial evidence and the last seen theory.

Accepting the prosecution's case, the court upheld the life sentence awarded to Yadav and dismissed his appeal.