DEHRADUN: A computer teacher at a private school in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment for raping his 14-year-old student of Class 9 at her home in Aug 2023. While passing the order, the special sessions court (Pocso) judge also imposed a fine of Rs 1.2 lakh on the convict.
The prosecution said the teacher, in his early 30s, raped the girl after forcibly entering her house on the night of Aug 9, 2023. After the girl raised an alarm, her aunt rushed to her help and found the door locked from the inside. The teacher opened the door, pushed the woman and fled.
The survivor’s grandfather filed a complaint on Aug 12, and the accused was arrested in Oct 2023. The girl was living with her grandfather in Pithoragarh as her father, an Army personnel, was posted in Jammu and Kashmir and her mother stayed at their native village.
In her testimony, the girl said her assaulter had also molested her in the school premises.
Following an investigation, police submitted a chargesheet, and the prosecution presented medical reports and the examining doctor’s testimony in the court.
On Tuesday, the court sentenced the rapist to 25 years of rigorous imprisonment after finding him guilty under IPC section 376(2)(f)(i)(3) (rape of woman by relative, guardian, teacher, or a person in a position of trust or authority).
He was also sentenced to seven years of imprisonment under IPC section 506 (criminal intimidation) and five years each under sections 457 (house-breaking by night) and 354 (assault or criminal force to outrage a woman’s modesty).
Under the Pocso Act, he was awarded three years of rigorous imprisonment under section 11(vi) read with section 12, and seven years under section 9(f) read with section 10.
While convicting the rapist, the court said: “He not only tarnished the teacher-student relationship but also demeaned the stature of a teacher in society”.
It ordered Rs 1 lakh compensation to the survivor from the penalty amount and directed the state govt to pay her Rs 5 lakh in compensation.
(The victim’s identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
