man jailed 3 years for staring and winking at a minor girl (Representative image) | Photo Credit: Thinkstock

Beed: A young man from Maharashtra's Marathwada paid a huge price for teasing a girl. 24-year-old Purushottam Veer, a resident of Takal Gawhan in Beed, was sentenced to three years of prison term for winking and staring at a minor.

A Beed court in Marathwada awarded him the sentence. The incident took place on 20 April 2017 when Veer started stalking a 16-year-old girl on the streets of Raymoha. He then reportedly winked and stared her.

The victim then lodged a complaint against Veer at the Patoda police station on the very same day. The Police filed an FIR basis the Prevention of Torture and Child Sexual Abuse Act (POSCO).

The trial, in this case, had begun closed to a year-and-half ago and the court has pronounced the verdict now. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 500 on the guilty. While sub-inspector Arun Dongre led the investigation in the case, a total of seven witnesses testified against the accused.

The sentence by the court has been welcomed by everyone and seen as a move which will help prevent harassment. It is seen as a deterrent for men making unwanted sexual advances towards women. "It is a crime to stare at a girl for more than 14 seconds. A complaint can be filed against anyone in this regard," Kerala excise department commissioner Rishiraj Singh was quoted as saying in 2016.