Bhubaneswar: A POCSO court in Odisha’s Ganjam district has awarded death penalty to a man for raping a minor girl five years ago.

The Ad-hoc FTSC, POCSO court at Berhampur sentenced convict Keshaba Nahak alias Kesha to death under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and Sections 376(2)(F) and 376 AB of the IPC. However, the death penalty to the convict is subjected to confirmation by the Orissa High Court.

The court also sentenced Nahak to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and slapped a penalty of Rs 50,000 on him under Section 307 of the IPC. Besides, the convict has been awarded five years of RI under Section 363 of the IPC.

Victim to get Rs 5 lakh as compensation

As per the case records, Nahak, a resident of Manasila village under Polosara police limits in Ganjam had raped the minor on November 21, 2021.

The Polosara police had registered a case in this regard on the basis of a complaint lodged by the victim’s family.

The court convicted Nahak after examining the witnesses and other evidence gathered by the police during the investigation.

In its verdict, the court also asked the authorities concerned to provide Rs 5 lakh as compensation to the victim, said Special Public Prosecutor Siba Prasad Mishra.