Double Death Sentence in Gujarat: Justice for a Heinous Crime

A Gujarat court awarded a 'double death sentence' to Arjun Gohel for raping and murdering a seven-year-old in 2019. Charged under the Indian Penal Code and POCSO Act, the case was termed rarest of the rare. The court also granted Rs 13 lakh to the victim's family as compensation.

In a landmark judgment, a court in Gujarat's Anand district handed down a 'double death sentence' to Arjun Gohel for the 2019 rape and murder of a seven-year-old girl in Khambhat.

Gohel was convicted under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and section 6 of the POCSO Act by the Khambhat sessions court, Judge Parveen Kumar presiding. Public prosecutor Raghuvir Pandya highlighted the case as one of the 'rarest of the rare.'

The court ordered a compensation of Rs 13 lakh for the girl's family. The decision ensures that Gohel remains subject to capital punishment, even if acquitted of one crime by a higher court. The case emerged when locals found the girl's body, and Gohel, identified by witnesses, was arrested.

(With inputs from agencies.)