Kota (Raj), Mar 15 (PTI) A special court in Jhalawar on Tuesday sentenced a 22-year-old man to 20 years of imprisonment for raping a girl around three years ago.

The court also slapped the man with a fine of Rs 10,000 after holding him guilty of raping the 15-year-old girl in a village under Pedawa police station limits in Jhalawar district, Public Prosecutor (PP), POCSO court - 2, Lalchand Meena said.

Also Read | Gujarat Shocker: 16-Year-Old Girl Raped by Neighbour on Marriage Lure in Halvad; Booked.

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court Judge Sanjay Kumar sentenced Vijesh Kumar Meghwal for raping the girl, a neighbour, in March 2019, Meena said.

The father, accompanied by the minor rape survivor on March 25, 2019 lodged a report in Pedawa police station alleging that Meghwal forcibly took her into his house while she was out to ease herself in the morning.

Also Read | Hijab Verdict to Have Adverse Impact on Religious Freedom, Muslim Girls’ Education, Says Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind.

When she did not return home, the family launched a search for her and found her locked in Meghwal's house later in the day.

Based on the report, the police had lodged a case against Meghwal under section 376 of the IPC and provisions of the POCSO Act and began investigation, the PP said, adding the medical examination was carried out and survivor's statements under 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) were recorded.

Statements of at least 12 witnesses were recorded and 22 documents were produced before the court during the trial, the public prosecutor said.

Meghwal had been in jail under judicial custody since his arrest in the case, he added.

(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)