Balasore (Odisha), Jun 26 (PTI) A POCSO court here on Thursday sentenced a 60-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping a differently abled girl, a government advocate said.

POCSO court judge Indira Priyadarshini pronounced the sentence against Padmalochan Kamila, who raped the 13-year-old girl from his locality on April 17, 2024, according to Special Public Prosecutor Pranab Panda.

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The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on the convict.

In case of failure to pay the fine, the convict will have to serve an additional one-year jail term, he added.

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The court pronounced the verdict after examining 20 witnesses and 17 exhibits.

The special public prosecutor said the court has directed the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) to pay Rs 4 lakh compensation to the victim.

According to the prosecution, the victim was known to the convict, and she regularly visited his house to watch television. On April 17 last year, finding her alone, Padmalochan raped her.

Following the incident, the victim's mother lodged a complaint at Sahadevkhunta police station.

Later, police arrested Padmalochan and forwarded him to the court.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)