Indore (Madhya Pradesh): In a landmark judgment, the Indore district court on Friday awarded death sentence to a youth who raped a minor girl in Hira Nagar police station area last year in February. This is the first capital punishment this year. District prosecution media cell in charge Abhishek Jain said that the court of additional sessions judge and special judge (POCSO Act) Savita Jadiya delivered the verdict in the special sessions case.
The accused, Mangal Panwar, a resident of Dewas, was given triple death penalty under rape charges and POCSO Act. District public prosecution officer and special public prosecutor Sanjay Meena led the prosecution side. Jain said that on February 27, 2024, Hira Nagar police received information of the crime. On reaching MY Hospital, the police learned that the victim was undergoing treatment.
During questioning, the victim’s mother recounted that she and her family lived in a hut in the Hira Nagar area. On the day of the incident, at around 3:00 PM, she was washing clothes behind the hut, while her seven-year-old daughter was playing nearby. At approximately 3:15 PM, she heard her daughter’s cries and saw a man assaulting her in an abandoned plot across the road.
The accused, described as a 20-22-year-old male wearing a brown jacket and dark shorts, tried to flee but was caught by local residents and handed over to the police. Based on medical evidence and witnesses; statements, the accused was arrested and a charge sheet was filed in court, leading to his conviction and sentencing.
Court comment on the sentence
In its judgment, the court remarked that a rape survivor, if alive, endures a fate worse than death, suffering lifelong agony. The court noted the extreme cruelty inflicted upon the seven-year-old victim, including serious injuries to her private parts and expressed concern that the accused could repeat such crimes in future. In line with the spirit of the POCSO Act, the court deemed the death penalty as the appropriate punishment to deter such heinous crimes in society.
Compensation of Rs 5 lakh to victim
The court recommended a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the minor victim for the severe physical and mental trauma she suffered.
Earlier death sentences
– February 07, 2023: Indore court awarded death penalty to a man who had killed a seven-year-old girl by stabbing her 29 times after abducting her with the intention of committing sexual assault on September 23, 2022. The incident took place when the victim was playing near her grandmother’s house in the Azad Nagar area of the city. The accused, Saddam, took her to his house in another locality but failed to sexually assault her as she raised an alarm. Enraged, he killed her. He was later arrested and booked for murder, abduction and also under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
– May 12, 2018: In one of the quickest deliveries of justice the country has seen, a 25-year-old man who kidnapped, raped and then killed a three-month-old girl was sentenced to death on May 12, 2018 by a fast track court in Indore within 23 days of the crime.
What is a triple death sentence?
A ‘triple death sentence’ means that a person has been sentenced to death three separate times for different crimes, essentially signifying that he/she will be executed for each of the three offences individually, depending on the jurisdiction’s legal system.
This implies the individual has been found guilty of three separate crimes, each carrying a capital punishment penalty. The crimes involved are likely to be considered extremely serious and heinous in nature. The exact procedures and appeals process for a triple death sentence will vary
