Delhi Court sends molester of 8-yr-old to 5 years in jail

New Delhi: The scars and bad memories of sexual abuse continue to haunt a child and are a hurdle in her emotional and psychological growth, a Delhi court has said while sending a man to jail for five years for molesting an eight-year-old in 2016.

Additional Sessions Judge Seema Maini awarded five years of rigorous imprisonment to a factory worker Mohan Kumar, hailing from Nepal, along with a fine of Rs 20,000 and said he had not only outraged the girl’s modesty, but also nipped her confidence.

The judge said: “Modesty is to a woman what fragrance is to flower. Outraging a woman’s modesty, not hurts her bodily self, but her whole persona and very existence… Outraging a woman’s modesty robs her of her dignity, nips her confidence and cripples her existence. This is what the convict is guilty of, and therefore, the offence committed by him cannot be treated lightly, and he deserves no leniency.”

The judge also asked the Delhi State Legal Services Authority to grant a compensation of Rs one lakh to the victim.  

The complaint filed by the girl's mother on May 25, 2016, said that Kumar had caught hold of the girl's hand, dragged her to a corner near her house and tried to molest her.

The complaint said the girl's mother, on hearing her scream, came out of the house and apprehended the convict.

The accused, during the trial, claimed innocence and said he was being framed in the case due to some previous enmity. He claimed that he had merely asked for the telephone in the girl's hand. However, the court rejected the accused’s claims. saying his statement has established his presence at the spot