Patna: School principal sentenced to death for raping 11-year-old student
A private school principal in Patna has been given death sentence by a court for raping an 11-year-old student of the institute, while another teacher of that school and a co-accused in the case was awarded life imprisonment for conniving with him. Meanwhile, the court ordered a compensation of Rs. 15 lakh to be paid to the survivor. The incident had occurred in 2018.
Rs. 1 lakh fine also imposed on the principal
The special court of ADJ-VI Awadhesh Kumar, in an order passed on Monday, announced capital punishment for the principal - Arvind Kumar alias Raj Singhania, 31, besides imposing a fine of Rs. 1 lakh on him. Co-accused Abhishek Kumar was sentenced to life imprisonment and slapped with a fine of Rs. 50,000. The amount of fine would be paid to the survivor.
'I'm unable to impose sentence less than capital punishment'
"Considering the nature of the case against the main accused Arvind Kumar, who has committed rape with the victim, I am unable to impose the sentence less than capital punishment," the court observed in its judgment, The Times of India reports.
The matter came to light in 2018
The gruesome crime had come to light in late 2018 after the parents of the survivor took her to a doctor noticing her perpetual illness. The doctor examined her and found her to be pregnant. The parents later approached the police, after which a First Information Report (FIR) was filed against Arvind and Abhishek on September 19, 2018. Both the accused were subsequently arrested.
The incident took place during July-August, 2018
Special public prosecutor Suresh Chandra Prasad said that Abhishek had first sent the survivor in a room in the school building saying the principal was checking her copy there. "There was a bed in that room where Arvind raped her at least six times over a period of two months (sic)." The survivor had later undergone abortion at the PMCH, following the court's permission.
I'm satisfied with the court verdict, says survivor's mother
Arvind owned the New Central Public School at Mitramandal Colony in Patna's Phulwari Sharif area, which was closed down soon after the matter came in the public eye. Meanwhile, the rape survivor's mother has welcomed the special court's verdict. "I lived under constant threats...I am satisfied with the court verdict. It came before a day of Saraswati Puja (sic)," she told reporters.
