Challenge in this appeal is to the legality and validity of the
judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 4.2.2009 passed
by the II Additional Sessions Judge, Balodabazar, Distt. Raipur in ST
No.15/2008 whereby the appellant stands convicted under Section
376 of IPC and sentenced to undergo RI for 10 years, pay a fine of
Rs.2 lacs and in default thereof to suffer additional RI for two years
and six months.
02. Case of the prosecution, in brief, is that the accused/appellant
had been sexually exploiting the prosecutrix, a girl of 19 years, on the
pretext of marriage as a result of which she got three months pregnant.
The appellant gave her some pills for abortion but that did not work.
When all this came to the knowledge of her parents, they scolded her
and a village meeting was convened on 9.2.2008 where the appellant
admitted his affair with the prosecutrix and her pregnancy and agreed
to marry her. However, in the next meeting on 14.2.2008 the appellant
did not turn up and his father refused to keep her in his house. When
the appellant did not marry her, she lodged a report on 15.2.2008 at
the police station under Section 376 of IPC.