Labourer gets 20 yrs for rape; crime sparked off anti-migrant violence

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A fast-track court here Thursday awarded 20 years of rigorous imprisonment to a migrant labourer for raping a 14-month-old girl in Gujarat's Sabarkantha district in September last year.

The incident had led to violence against migrant labourers in some parts of Gujarat, leading to an exodus. While special public prosecutor Rashmikant Pandya demanded death penalty for 19-year-old Ravindra Sah, a native of Bihar, Sabarkantha sessions court judge K B Gujarati awarded him 20 years in prison considering his young age.

Pandya said he will seek the state government's approval to file an appeal in the high court for enhancement of the punishment. Apart from the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Sah was found guilty under the newly introduced section 376-AB of the Indian Penal Code which provides for the maximum punishment of death sentence for raping children.

Following the state government's request, the Gujarat High Court had set up a fast-track court to try the case. The incident took place at a village near Himmatnagar on September 28, 2018. Sah, a factory worker, was arrested the same day.

Following the incident, migrant workers from Hindi-speaking states were attacked in parts of Gujarat.

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