Pune: A special court in Pune on Thursday convicted a 65-year-old man in the rape-murder of a three-year-old girl in Nasrapur village last month, which had triggered massive state-wide protests, road blockades, and intense public outrage.
Following the swift conviction, which came within sixty days of the crime, the court will pronounce the quantum of punishment on June 29, said a government lawyer.
Additional sessions judge (special judge) SR Salunkhe held the accused Bhimrao Kamble guilty of kidnapping, rape and murder, following which the prosecution sought the death penalty, contending that he was âbeyond reformâ.
Special public prosecutor Ajay Misar said they proved all charges, including kidnapping, molestation, rape and murder, along with offences under several sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The accused denied the offence and claimed the child was injured after he slipped while showing her a calf, but the evidence proved otherwise, Misar told reporters after the hearing.
He said the prosecution relied on 12 Supreme Court landmark judgments to argue that the case falls in the ârarest of the rareâ category.
We explained the victimâs age and the 39 minutes of continuous assault. The post-mortem report showed 18 injuries. There was rape, anal penetration and oral sexual assault. The accusedâs semen was found on the childâs hand and neck, Misar said.
The court accepted CCTV footage, DNA profiling, medical evidence, potency test and soundness test as properly proved, he added.
Children who witnessed the accused take the victim also identified him during the identification parade, Misar said. In all, 82 witnesses testified in the court, he said.
The government lawyer said the prosecution has sought the death penalty, arguing that Kamble was âbeyond reformâ.
Kamble has prior offences involving a 62-year-old woman, a 17-year-old girl, an animal, and now this child. He is a threat to society and has no right to live if set free, he said.
