A man has been sentenced to ten years rigorous imprisonment for raping, stalking and threatening his wife's sister, with a Delhi court observing that the convict did not mend his ways despite four FIRs lodged against him by the woman.
"Agirlwhoiscontinuouslyfacingmolestationat thehandsofher(brother-in-law) whohadanevileyeonherandwantedtobe physical with her since his marriage with her sister,hadnooptionbuttofilethecomplaintwiththepolice," Additional Sessions Judge Renu Bhatnagar said.
The court observed that despite taking legal recourse, the woman fell prey at the hands of the accused, who married her sister in 2015.
"Her (victim's) various police complaints, culminating in registration of four FIRs againsttheaccused,telltaleofthehelplesssituationofagirl,who despite taking recourse tolawandpolice,fellpreyinthehandsofthe accused, who ultimately succeeded in committingrapewithher,despite all her resistance and efforts.
"Nothingadversecameoutinthecross examinationoftheprosecutrix so as to show thatshewasdeposing falselyinthecourt. Hertestimonyis consistentthroughout," the judge said.
The court, which also slapped a fine of Rs 15,000 on the convict, directed the Delhi Legal Service Authority (DLSA) to pay the victim Rs two lakh compensation considering "the gravity of the offence, her mental and physical trauma, her social status and financialcondition".
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It noted that ever since the convict got married, he was stalking his wife's sister because of which the couple soon separated.
According to the prosecution, the man forced the victim to have physical relations with him and threatened to torture her sister (his wife) and kill her father and brother if she refused.
She lodged several complaints against him, yet he did not mend his ways, the woman told the court, adding that on December 27, 2015 he raped her.
She lodged an FIR on January 6, 2016 alleging that on several occasions, he had molested her and stalked her following which she lodged various complaints.
The man, however, denied all the allegations and claimed he was falsely implicated by the victim, adding that he had consensual physical relations with her.
The court rejected his contentions and sent him behind bars while noting that the woman was threatened and coerced to have physical relation.
"Theactofmaking physicalrelationswasundercoercionandthe consent wasnotvoluntary anditwaspassivegivinginbytheprosecutrixonaccountof inevitable compulsionandcloudedbythefearofthreatsofblackmailingbythe accused.
"Despitethe continuousFIRsagainsttheaccused, theaccusedwasnot desistingfrom hisactofmolestingtheprosecutrixandconductoftheaccused certainly had a scary impact onthemindoftheprosecutrix," the court said.
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