Thane court acquits 54-year-old contractor of raping woman labourer

Thane, Oct 12: A Thane court has acquitted a 54-year-old labour contractor accused of raping a woman labourer, giving him the benefit of doubt.

District Judge Dr Rachna R Tehra in her order passed on Tuesday said the prosecution failed to prove the charges against the accused, hailing from Wada in neighbouring Palghar district.

The prosecution told the court that in October 2013, the accused took the woman, then aged 19, to a lodge and raped her.

He committed the offence on several other occasions also after threatening the woman, the prosecution said.

In 2015, when the woman's mother enquired about her health and unusual behaviour, she told her about the offence.

The woman subsequently underwent a medical check-up which revealed she was four months pregnant.

Later, based on her complaint, the police registered a case against the contractor and arrested him.

The defence counsel told the court that the entire case was cooked up and the contractor was not involved in the crime.

After hearing both the sides, the judge observed that the delay in filing the complaint in 2015 was not explained.

Also, the DNA test carried out on the child did not support the prosecution's case, the court said.

The court concluded that the prosecution failed to prove the case against the accused beyond all reasonable doubt and acquitted him.