Hyderabad: Man sentenced for 20 yrs in jail for sexually exploiting minor

Hyderabad: A court in Hyderabad sentenced a 39-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, for sexually exploiting a minor girl.

The girl who is the step-daughter of the man is 15 years old. The accused threatened and raped her for five to six months before she confided to her mother. Her mother lodged a complaint at a police station in February 2021.

Based on the complaint, police arrested the accused and sent the victim for counselling at the Bharosa Centre. Later, the police filed the charge sheet. The accused was convicted under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including the POCSO Act.

The XII Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge in Nampally sentenced the man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 1,000.