Gopeshwar (Uttarakhand), Jul 15 (PTI) A local court here sentenced a man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a seven-year-old girl in 2023, officials said on Tuesday.

Chamoli District and Special Sessions Judge Vindhyachal Singh also imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on Ashok Mahato.

Also Read | India Urges Bangladesh Not to Demolish Satyajit Ray's Ancestral Home; Offers Help to Preserve It.

Special Public Prosecutor Mohan Pant told PTI that the victim's mother, a resident of Joshimath, had filed a complaint against the accused for raping her daughter on June 25, 2024.

Based on her complaint, a case was registered against Mahato, and an investigation was launched, Pant said.

Also Read | Jharkhand Shocker: 20-Year-Old Man Slits Throat of Teenage Wife for Chatting With Youths in Jamshedpur; Stuffs Her Body in Sack, Dumps in Drain.

The court found Mahato guilty of rape on Tuesday and sentenced him to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, Pant 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)