The second Additional District and Sessions Court Judge Sarvodaya Shettigar, on Thursday, sentenced to three years a 19-year-old youth on finding him guilty of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old girl in Sullia in January 2014.
According to the chargesheet, the 11-year-old victim had returned from school and was playing with her friends near her house in a village at Sullia taluk on January 27, 2014. Her mother asked her to buy salt from a nearby shop. While she was returning home, Naveen K, who has been now been sentenced, and his 16-year-old friend dragged the victim to an arecanut farm and raped her.
On the complaint by the girl, the Sullia police arrested Naveen and filed chargesheet for offences under Section 8 of Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Act and under Sections 354 (sexual harassment) and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the Indian Penal Code. The case was registered against the 16-year-old boy and it was referred to the Juvenile Justice Board.
Special Senior Public Prosecutor C. Venkataramana Swamy examined as many as 19 witnesses, including the 11-year-old victim, who told before the court about the sexual assault.
The Judge sentenced Naveen to undergo three years imprisonment and pay a fine of Rs. 5,000 for the offence. The Judge also Naveen to undergo three months imprisonment for offence of sexual harassment and 15 days imprisonment for offence of wrongful restraint. All the sentences will run concurrently, the Judge said.
The Judge directed the District Legal Services Authority to pay compensation to the victim under the Karnataka Victim Compensation Scheme.
