Man gets 7 years RI for raping minor girl

Thane, Mar 10: A court here has sentenced a man from Bhiwandi to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a five-year-old girl in 2016.

In a judgement passed recently, district judge H M Patwardhan held Ramesh Rajaram Catham under the Indian Penal Code section 376 (rape) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The court also imposed a fine of Rs 2,500 on him.

Public prosecutor Rekha Hiwrale told the court that the incident had taken place on July 18, 2016.

"Catham, who was the girl's neighbour, took her to an isolated spot and sexually assaulted her. She was later rescued from there," Hiwrale said.

The girl later named the accused and her parents lodged a complaint against him with the Bhiwandi police station, he said.