Youth sentenced to 20 years RI in POCSO case in Chittoor

A special POCSO Court in Chittoor on Wednesday sentenced a youth to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) and imposed a fine of ₹4,100 for kidnapping and raping a minor girl in 2020.

According to police, T. Mani (27), a resident of Kapumondi Venganapalli village in Vedurukuppam mandal, befriended a minor girl, who was then studying in Class 8, and later forced her into marriage. On December 9, 2020, Mani took the girl on his two-wheeler to Bhakarapet, where he reportedly married her at a temple. Later, he confined her in a rented house, subjecting her to repeated sexual assault.

The girl’s parents lodged a missing person complaint at Vedurukuppam police station on December 10, 2020, following which a case was registered by the area police, who traced the girl and rescued her on March 22, 2021. Medical examination and seizure of her clothing were carried out as part of the investigation.

The case, earlier registered as a missing person complaint, was altered to various IPC Sections and Sections 3 r/w 4 of the POCSO Act, 2012. The investigation was later handled by then Inspector of Karvetinagaram, K. Chandrasekhar, who arrested Mani on March 24, 2021.