UP couple gets death sentence for sexually assaulting 33 children; three-year-old among survivors
A local in Uttar Pradesh ordered death sentence to a couple after being convicted in a case of sexual assault of 33 children, some of them being as young as three-year-old. The landmark verdict came from the court of a special judge for the POCSO Act in UP's Banda.
The court also directed the government to provide compensation of Rs 10 lakh to every survivor. In addition, every penny recovered from the accused's house shall be equally distributed among the survivors.
The accused, Rambhawan and wife Durgawati, were convicted under several sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The conviction includes unnatural offences, aggravated penetrative sexual offences, child pornography, and criminal conspiracy, among others.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a case in October 2020 against Rambhawan and others on allegations of sexual abuse of children.
During the investigation, the central agency discovered that the accused commited sexual crimes.
The crimes were extremely cruel. Some survivors suffered serious injuries to their private parts, and a few had to stay in hospitals for years because of the harm caused to them.
Some victims have eye injuries, and many are still dealing with deep psychological trauma caused by the accused. The crimes reportedly took place in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda and Chitrakoot districts between 2010 and 2020.
The accused, Rambhawan, was working as a junior engineer in the Irrigation Department. He allegedly used different ways to trap children, such as offering them access to online video games, money, and gifts.
- With inputs from agencies
