Kozhikode, February 7: A 42-year-old man was sentenced to 133 years' rigorous imprisonment on Tuesday, February 6 in two cases of rape and sexual harassment of his two daughters aged 13 and 11 years. The Manjeri special fast-track Pocso court in Malappuram also imposed a hefty fine of Rs 8.8 lakh on the accused and directed that the amount be transferred to the rape survivors.

According to a report in TOI, the accused father had repeatedly raped the elder of his two daughters inside and outside their home. The situation was brought to the attention of the mother when he demanded sexual favours from the younger daughter. Kerala Shocker: Woman Lies About Rape to Make Boyfriend Jealous, Arrested in Kochi.

The younger daughter narrated their ordeal to the mother, who subsequently reported the situation to the local authorities. The disturbing incident had rattled the community in Edavanna town of Kerala at that time.

The mother, an Anganwadi teacher complained to the woman panchayat member, following which Childline intervened. Subsequently, Edavanna police registered a case and arrested the man. The elder daughter revealed that the accused repeatedly raped her when the mother was away.

In the order that was passed almost two years after the arrest, the court gave the accused 123 years’ jail and slapped a fine of Rs 7 lakh, in the first case of repeated rape of the 13-year-old daughter which occurred from November 2021 to March 2022 at his house. He was awarded 40 years imprisonment under several sections of IPC and POCSO Act.

In the second case of sexual harassment of 11-year-old daughter, the court imposed a 10-year rigorous imprisonment term and a fine of Rs 1.8 lakh. The second offense occurred at his residence on March 26, 2022. Kerala Gangrape: Boyfriend Among Six Arrested for Raping 17-Year-Old Girl in Pathanamthitta.

Special public prosecutor A Somasundaran stated that the court had granted the prosecution's request to proceed with a custodial trial. The accused had been in judicial custody for one-and-half-years and tried to secure his bail several times, but we said that it would pose threat to the girls and the mother, he added.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 07, 2024 12:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).