LUCKNOW: A special POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) court, on Monday, sentenced a juvenile to 20 years of imprisonment in connection with his involvement in the rape of the three-year old girl.The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the convict saying that the penalty amount would go to the survivor. Special POCSO court judge Vijendra Tripathi clarified that if the convict failed to deposited the penalty, he would have to serve three additional months in jail. At the time of crime, the accused was 17 years of age. However, considering the crime as heinous, the Juvenile Justice Board formed a panel under the POCSO Act to ascertain if the accused was mentally mature to understand the consequences of the crime he was committing. The panel submitted its report on November 11, 2019 saying the juvenile had the understanding of the severity of the criminal offence but he was oblivious of the consequences.The Juvenile Justice Board then referred the matter to the POCSO court for trial of the accused considering him as major. The trial was conducted in the POCSO court and on the basis of evidence, it convicted the accused for the offences of rape.
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