India News | Kerala Court Sentences AIDS Patient to Life for Sexual Assault of Minor Boy
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. A Kerala court on Wednesday sentenced a 39-year-old man, who has been an AIDS patient since 2011, to three life imprisonment for sexually assaulting a minor boy four years ago in this district.
Kollam (Kerala), Jan 31 (PTI) A Kerala court on Wednesday sentenced a 39-year-old man, who has been an AIDS patient since 2011, to three life imprisonment for sexually assaulting a minor boy four years ago in this district.
Punalur Fast Track Special Court judge Baiju T D sentenced the man to life term for each of the offences under section 377 (unnatural offences) of the IPC and sections 5(l) (penetrative sexual assault on the child more than once) and 5(m) (penetrative sexual assault on a child below twelve years) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Ajith K P said.
However, as the sentences have to be served concurrently, the man will have to serve only one life term, the SPP said.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1.05 lakh on the convict, the prosecutor said.
The incident took place in August 2020 when the boy was alone at home, the SPP said.
The accused used to work in the victim's father's shop and therefore, was acquainted with the child, the prosecutor said.
On the day of the incident, the accused showed the child obscene videos and then sexually assaulted the boy several times.
It came to light when the boy was caught by his mother while watching obscene videos on his father's mobile phone, the prosecutor said.
On being scolded for watching such videos, the child revealed what had happened to him and thereafter, the parents informed the police, the SPP said.
The prosecutor also said that all tests of the child so far have turned negative for the presence of the AIDS virus.
However, one more test remains to be done, which can be carried out only after 2-3 years, to finally confirm there is no infection, the SPP said.
He also said that according to medical experts examined during the trial, the chance of the child getting infected was less as the accused was taking antiretroviral medication.
(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)