The child said that he was sodomised by the accused several times. (Representational Image)
A 31-year-old man has been sent to 10 years in jail for sodomising a nine-year-old boy, with a Delhi court observing that the culprit had not only abused the victim but tormented him.
The court awarded the jail term to Afzal, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, holding that he does not deserve any leniency or mercy as he was also facing trial for a similar offence.
"Small and young children of tender age are always an easy prey for the predators like the convict and are quite vulnerable to such acts as committed by the convict. He not only sexually abused the victim but also tormented him and forced him to beg for food and money.
He committed all these acts only to take revenge from the victim's uncle without even realising what damage he could have caused to the psyche and future of victim," Additional Sessions Judge Sanjay Sharma said.
The court held Afzal guilty of the offences under sections 363 (kidnapping), 377 (sodomy) of the IPC and section 6 (punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences Act. It imposed a fine of Rs 3,000 on the convict.
"I am of the considered opinion that the prosecution has been able to prove its case against accused Afzal beyond reasonable doubt and it has been conclusively proved that the accused kidnapped the victim and took him to Rajasthan where he committed carnal intercourse with him against the order of the nature," the judge said.
The court noted that Rs 80,000 compensation has already been given to the victim and directed Delhi Legal Services Authority to pay an additional compensation of Rs 50,000 the child under the Victims Compensation Act.
According to police, a missing complaint was lodged in April 2013, when the child did not return home from school. The victim's father suspected Afzal's role behind it.
The police got an information that the man had taken the child to Jaipur and he was caught at the highway.
The child had said in his statement that he was sodomised by the accused several times and also beaten up by him.
During the trial, the man denied the allegations levelled against him and claimed he was falsely implicated in the case.