Berhampur: The special Pocso court here on Friday sentenced a 60-year-old man to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for sexually abusing a 6-year-old girl last year.Additional district-cum-special Pocso court judge Pranati Pattnaik also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on the convict. “The man will have to undergo jail for another six months, if he fails to pay the fine,” said special public prosecutor Narayan Panda.“The court also directed the district legal services authorities to provide a compensation of Rs 10.50 lakh to the girl. The fine amount will be recovered from the convict,” Panda said.“The court pronounced the judgment after recording the statements of eight witnesses, including police and doctor, and based on the medical reports,” he said.Sources said the accused forcibly took her to a room while she was playing in the verandah of her house and sexually abused her on March 20 last year. The girl revealed her ordeal to her mother when she returned home. She took her to the hospital and lodged an FIR. After registering a case under Pocso Act, police arrested the accused on the same day. The man was in jail since his arrest, sources said.The same court on Thursday sentenced six youths to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 17-year-old girl in May 2024 . The court also directed the district legal services authorities to provide a compensation of Rs 15 lakh to the survivor.
