T’puram: Kollam fast-track special court on Wednesday sentenced a 32-year-old man to 90 years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) with a fine of Rs 5 lakh in a grave Pocso case involving repeated sexual assault of a minor girl.The convict had been living with a woman and brutally sexually assaulted her 15-year-old daughter from a previous marriage on multiple occasions whenever the mother was not home. The court, presided over by Judge Sameer A, handed down the stringent sentence following a thorough examination of evidence and witness testimonies presented during the trial. If the fine is not paid, the convict will be required to serve an additional 30 months in RI. Should the fine amount be collected, Rs 3 lakh from it will be transferred directly to the survivor as compensation. Kollam district legal services authority has also been directed to assess and determine an adequate compensation amount for the survivor based on a careful understanding of her current living situation and needs.The case came to light after a child welfare committee (CWC) counsellor, acting on information received from Kollam CWC, visited local anganwadi, conducted counselling sessions with the cousins of the survivor, understood the girl’s difficult circumstances, and took action.Special public prosecutor Saritha R appeared for the prosecution. The chargesheet was filed by Kannanallur SHO P B Vinod Kumar. ASIs Sheeba Prasanna and Gopan coordinated the prosecution proceedings.
