Man sentenced to life imprisonment for marrying minor

A 23-year-old man has been sentenced to life imprisonment by a local court on charges of kidnapping and marrying a minor girl.
The court also ordered the convict to pay Rs one lakh as compensation to the girl.
According to prosecution, Suresh, a construction worker at Chennimalai, 25 km from Erode, kidnapped a 17-year-old girl on September 22 last year, took her to Mysuru and married her.
He later settled with the girl at Vellore in Tamil Nadu.
Following a complaint by the girl's parents, police traced the duo and arrested Suresh.
The girl was handed over to her parents.

District Mahila Court Judge N. Thirunavukkarasu yesterday sentenced Suresh to life imprisonment under provisions of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).
The judge also sentenced him to 10 years rigorous imprisonment for kidnapping the girl and two years RI under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act. The judge ordered that the sentences should run concurrently.