The Fast Track Mahila Court at Tiruvannamalai on Wednesday sentenced a man to 10 years rigorous imprisonment for abducting and marrying a minor girl in 2014.
G. Mahizhenthi, Principal District Judge, who holds full charge of the Fast Track Mahila Court, sentenced Vijayan, a resident of Kanalapadi village in Tiruvannamalai to 10 years RI and imposed a fine of ₹1,000 under section 366 A (procuration of minor girl) of Indian Penal Code, two years RI with ₹1,000 fine under section 9 (punishment for male adult marrying a child) of The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 and three years RI under section 4 (punishment for penetrative sexual assault) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. He will undergo the sentence concurrently.
Vijayan, then aged 35 years, had abducted a minor girl, who was studying in class XII, on March 25, 2014 under the false promise of marrying her. He had taken her to Tirupati and tied ‘thali’.
He had a sexual relationship with the minor girl and abandoned her in Tirupati, an official said.
Based on a complaint from the girl’s mother, the All-Women Police Station, Tiruvannamalai, registered a case.
This conviction is significant as Tiruvannamalai district stood third in the State in the number of child marriages.
To create awareness on preventing child marriages, the District Legal Services Authority, Tiruvannamalai, was already taking steps by visiting schools.
It has embarked on a campaign from November 9 to 18 to create awareness on preventing child marriages and child sexual abuse, he said.
