Man gets life term for rape-murder

Later, when the girl was repeatedly forcing him to marry her, Mallick took her to a mountainside on the pretext of evening walk one day and strangled her.

A court in Odisha's Kandhamal district sentenced a 22-year-old man to life imprisonment on Thursday for raping and murdering a minor girl five years ago.

Phulbani special Pocso judge Bhaskar Chandra Sahu also imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh on Babula Mallick, out of which Rs 1 lakh will be paid to the deceased's kin, special public prosecutor Banamali Behera said.

In June 2017, the accused had lured the 12-year-old girl to a village under Tikabali police station area and spent some days there. Later, when the girl was repeatedly forcing him to marry her, Mallick took her to a mountainside on the pretext of evening walk one day and strangled her. The body of the girl was dumped in a nearby ditch.

As many as 25 witnesses were examined in connection to the case.