Justice Served: 20-Year Sentence for Heinous Crime

A POCSO court sentenced Sankar Pradhan to 20 years in prison for raping a four-year-old girl and assaulting her mother. The court also imposed a fine and ordered compensation for the survivor. The case emerged from a 2024 incident in Phulbani, with police acting swiftly on the mother's FIR.

In a landmark verdict, a POCSO court in Phulbani sentenced Sankar Pradhan to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment on Wednesday for the brutal rape of a four-year-old girl and the assault on her mother last year.

The presiding judge, Monoranjan Das, imposed a fine of Rs 30,000 on Pradhan, with the stipulation that failure to pay would result in 13 additional months in custody. Public prosecutor Asim Kumar Praharaja confirmed these details.

Moreover, the court instructed the Kandhamal District Legal Services Authority to provide Rs 7 lakh in compensation to the survivor. The crime, committed in February 2024, prompted a swift police response to the FIR lodged by the victim's mother.

(With inputs from agencies.)