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Kochi: On Tuesday, A court in Kerala sentenced to death the man convicted in the horrific Aluva 5-year-old child rape and murder case. The accused identified as Ashfaq Alam. He was 28-year-old. Public prosecutor (PP) G Mohanraj said that Special POCSO court judge K Soman directed that convict Ashwaq Alam be hanged to death for killing a girl from Bihar.
The prosecutor said that the death sentence would be carried out after confirmation by the Kerala High Court. The court, accepting the prosecution’s argument the case was among the rarest of the rare, observed the accused did not deserve any leniency and that he was a threat to the entire society.
Judge K Soman, who presided over the trial, pronounced the sentence on the 110th day of completing the trial, which was also Children’s Day. Giving details of the sentences given to Alam, a migrant labourer from Bihar, the prosecutor told the media outside the court that the convict was given five life terms for the various offences of rape and aggravated penetrative sexual assault under the Indian Penal Code and the POCSO Act.
The court ordered that the life term would mean the convict should stay in prison for the rest of his natural life, the PP said. Ashfaq was sentenced to five years for destroying evidence, three years for drugging the minor, life imprisonment for raping the minor and the death penalty for the murder and rape of the five-year-old.
The court also directed the accused to pay a fine of Rs 7,70,000.The court also imposed a fine of over Rs six lakh on the convict, he said, and expressed satisfaction with the sentence. The court upheld 13 charges levelled by the prosecution against the accused, including murder, kidnapping, torture, indignity to a human corpse, destroying evidence and three POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) charges. The defense had argued that the death penalty be avoided citing the defendant’s age and possibility of repentance.
Pinarayi Vijayan ,Kerala Chief Minister said the punishment given in the case on Children’s Day should be seen as a strong warning to those who commit violence against children. ADGP (Law and Order) M R Ajith Kumar also welcomed the sentence given to the convict.
Speaking to reporters outside the court after the sentence was pronounced, the ADGP said it was a case which shocked the conscience of Kerala and the government right from the start was determined to ensure the maximum possible punishment for the accused.
It is one of the rarest-of-rare cases and the prosecution was able to prove that successfully. The probe was completed in 30 days. The accused was convicted on the 100th day after the incident and today marks the 110th day. This indicates the robustness of the criminal justice system,” the officer said.
State Health Minister Veena George also welcomed the verdict and said it would send out a strong message to society that children should not be harmed.”We all had hoped for the maximum punishment and the court gave that,” she told reporters.
The minister appreciated that the probe and the trial were completed in “record time”.She also said that society needs to be aware of the rights of children and protect them.
Meanwhile, one of the eyewitnesses in the case who had seen Alam walking away with the child on that fateful day, was overjoyed with the punishment given to the convict and distributed candy to people.
“The little girl’s soul will now attain peace,” he told reporters. The sentence was pronounced on a date celebrated as Children’s Day across the country.
The date also marks the 11th anniversary of the POCSO Act, which came into effect on November 14, 2012.The victim’s parents were present in court when the punishment was given to Alam, who was convicted on November 4.
The prosecution had argued that the case falls under the rarest-of-rare category and therefore, the death penalty should be given to the convict.
During arguments on sentence, Alam had claimed in court that the other accused were let go and only he was caught in the case and, beyond that, he did not make any other submission, the prosecution had said. The girl’s father had said he would meet Ashfaq after the court pronounced the sentence.
The court had found Alam guilty of all 16 offences in the charge sheet.Of the 16, five offences are punishable by death, the prosecution had said earlier. Praising the investigation team, ADGP (Law and Order) M R Ajith Kumar IPS said the quick response of the probe team and the completion of the procedure in only 30 days helped in securing a speedy and satisfactory conclusion to the case.
“Aluva DySP Prasad, Inspector of Police Manju Das and the probe team consisting of almost 30 officials did a good job as they were able to wrap up the investigation in 30 days. The police force led by the SI was able to capture the accused in a few hours. This was crucial to the case,” he said. The minor girl was brutally raped and strangled on July 28 after she was abducted from her rented house here.
The ADGP also commended the residents, media and authorities for helping in the case since the beginning. The body of the girl was found dumped in a stack in a marshy area behind a local market in nearby Aluva and the accused was arrested based on CCTV visuals.
