In Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, a special court has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for the abduction and rape of a 19-year-old woman in 2023. Special Judge Veena Narayan of the SC-ST Court also imposed a fine of 80,000 rupees on the guilty, Salman.
Government lawyer Kripa Shankar Tiwari shared on Friday that the court further ordered 40,000 rupees of the fine to be given to the victim as compensation. Initially, the police filed a case against Salman under IPC section 366 (kidnapping, abduction to compel marriage) and the SC/ST Act in December 2023.
Later, additional charges including IPC section 376 (rape), 504 (intentional insult with intent to breach peace), 406 (criminal breach of trust), and relevant sections of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act were added, and a charge sheet was filed in court. During the trial, witness testimonies revealed that the accused misled the victim by hiding his true identity, calling himself Sumit.
It's important to note that this is not the first incident where identity and religion were concealed to lure women or minors into such crimes. Many such cases surface frequently, sometimes involving blackmailing through videos.
