A Delhi court has sentenced a 65-year old man to five years in jail for sexually assaulting a 7-year old girl, saying he was guilty of crippling her childhood and deserved to be taken to task without leniency.
Additional Sessions Judge Seema Maini convicted the man under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for aggravated sexual assault and imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on him.
The court further directed the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) to grant a compensation of Rs 50,000 to the rape survivor's family.
"Sexual assault inhibits every kind of growth of the child, leaving the child either in a nervous wreck or a mental and emotional dwarf. Thus convict is guilty of crippling childhood as well as the whole personality of the child, for which he deserves to be taken to task, without leniency," it said in its order.
According to the prosecution, in 2013 the accused, who was living in the same neighbourhood as the girl, had entered her house while she was alone, gagged her and forcefully took her to a room. He then sexually assaulted her.
When her aunt came downstairs and saw that the accused had taken the girl inside the room, she raised an alarm and got the door opened. The victim then narrated the ordeal to her aunt and she got a case registered with the police.
The accused had said that he was falsely implicated and claimed trial.
The court said in its judgement, "Sexual assault is an act, which not just affects a child physically and emotionally but its psychological effect is too deep rooted, to be deciphered very soon after the assault.
"The psychological assault corrodes the inner being of the child, slowly but steadily, leaving deep embedded scars, which though not visible to the naked eye, get manifested in the child's future actions, reactions, and emotions. Such a sexually assaulted child develops fear psychosis, withdrawal symptoms as well as shiftiness in behaviour."
Roads Near Red Fort To Be Closed On Independence Day. Check Traffic Advisory Delhi Man, 20, Stabbed To Death For Resisting Robbery Bid At Goa Beach Assam Court Awards Man 15-Year Jail Term For Raping Minor Girl How Extreme Weather Is Leading To Rise In Child Marriages In Pakistan "Probably First Time Since '87/88...": Omar Abdullah On J&K Poll Dates Who Is Jasveen Sangha, "Ketamine Queen" Charged With Matthew Perry's Death Man Bites Off Part Of Father's Thumb During Argument Over Property: Cops Sikh Woman, Minor Son Kidnapped By 2 In Pakistan Rescued: Cops Chhattisgarh NEET UG 2024 Counselling Schedule Released, Check Details Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.