Balasore:

A 40-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years in jail by a special court in Odisha’s Balasore district on Saturday for raping a five-year-old girl when she was going to a shop near her house to buy soap.

The incident happened on May 3 when the girl’s mother sent her to a nearby shop. On the way, the man got hold of her, and promising her some snacks, took her to a secluded place where he raped her, according to the prosecution.

Besides sentencing him to 20 years in jail, the special POCSO court of Judge Ranjan Kumar Sutar also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on him.

The man was convicted under IPC section 376 (AB) which deals with rape on a woman under 12 years, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, said Special Public Prosecutor Pranab Kumar Panda.

The court directed the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) to pay a compensation of Rs 4 lakhs to the survivor.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Bhubaneswar:

In a shocking incident, a 4-year-old girl was rescued by Badagada police in Odisha’s Bhubaneswar after being sold by her parents for Rs 40,000. The accused couple, who are from Bihar, along with four other individuals involved, have been arrested, according to the police.

According to reports, the accused couple was experiencing financial issues and sold their four-year-old child to another childless couple in Pipili. According to the Badagada police station in charge, Trupti Ranjan Nayak, the duo was working as daily labourers under the Badagada policy limits.

After the incident came to light, Badagada police rescued the child and initiated an investigation. A total of six people including the mediators and both parents of the child have been arrested.

Badagada Police Station IIC, Trupti Ranjan Nayak said on Wednesday, “Today morning we received information from one Sarthak Mahadik that a Bihar couple residing in his home, have sold their four-year-old daughter. We have registered a case… The girl has been rescued from a village in the Pipli area. Six people have been detained and interrogation is going on.”

The parents of the child have confessed to selling their child and have also implicated two intermediaries from the Badagada area, who allegedly helped facilitate the illegal transaction.

Further investigation into the matter is underway.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)