The family of a teenager who was found raped and murdered in New Town in February has expressed disappointment over the verdict that sentenced the accused to life imprisonment. They now plan to challenge Wednesday’s order by a Pocso court in Barasat in a higher court.
“The verdict has left me disappointed and I have no option but to approach the high court. My daughter was killed in cold blood and then raped. Her lifeless body was dragged causing her innumerable scratches. If this was not rare then what could be?” the father of the 13-year-old girl whose mutilated body was found in a deserted area at New Town in February, said on Thursday.
The father, who works in Mumbai, said they would move Calcutta High Court challenging the verdict by the lower court.
An e-rickshaw driver Soumitra Roy, who was arrested and later chargesheeted for the rape and murder of the teenager, was awarded life imprisonment by a Barasat Pocso court on Wednesday.
The teenager — elder of two siblings — had stepped out of home on the night of the incident after having a fight with her mother.
“I work in the Merchant Navy and often have to stay away from the family. My daughter had gone out of home after having a small tiff with her mother. She was going to a relatives’ home but lost her way. The e-rickshaw driver gave her a lift and also offered her oranges. A few minutes later instead of bringing her home he took her to the deserted spot where he killed her first,” the bereaved father broke down.
Apart from life imprisonment — the maximum punishment for section 6 of the Pocso Act that deals with the punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault — and section 103(1) of BNS which deals with the offence of murder, the court awarded Roy 20 years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 65(1) of BNS, and imposed fines totalling ₹1 lakh.
In case of default, he will serve an additional 10 years.
Section 65(1) BNS deals with the punishment for rape.
Police had filed a 411-page chargesheet within two weeks of the crime in February.
