Siliguri (West Bengal) [India], September 8 (ANI): A Siliguri court on Saturday awarded the death penalty to a convict in the 2023 rape and murder case of a minor girl.

An Additional district and sessions Judge on Saturday sentenced MD Abbas to death within the 13 months after the minor was brutally raped and murdered in 2023.

Also Read | Lucknow Building Collapse: 5 Dead, 28 Injured As 3-Storey Building Collapses in Transport Nagar; Rescue Operations Underway (Watch Video).

The Additional Sessions Judge Anita Meherotra Mathur came to the end of the case after recording 33 witnesses and prosecution's arguments.

Speaking to ANI, Special Public Prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee said, "On the last occasion, we pleaded for the death sentence because three sections on which the punishment was proved among the other sections carries a maximum punishment. So last day I had a one-and-a-half hour hearing on this point trying to project this case as one of the rarest of the rare cases."

Also Read | India Can Play a Role in Resolving Russia-Ukraine Conflict, Says Italian PM Giorgia Meloni After Meeting Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Bivas Chatterjee said that the death sentence was awarded in two consecutive sections - one is section 302, which is murder and another is section 6 of the POCSO Act.

"The death sentence was awarded in two consecutive sections. One is section 302, which is murder and another is section 6 of the POCSO Act," Chatterjee said.

The incident happened on August 21, 2023, when the minor girl, heading for school, was brutally raped and murdered in an abandoned area under the jurisdiction of the Matigara Police Station in Siliguri. The Matigara police launched an investigation and arrested MD Abbas within six hours of the crime. (ANI)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)