Assam Court Awards Death Penalty To Rapist & Murderer Of 5-Year-Old Girl

The death penalty, which is the highest punishment that can be given to criminals in India, is reserved for the rarest of the rare cases only. However, off late many people have been demanding that capital punishment be given to people convicted of rape.

According to Hindustan Times, the additional district and sessions court in Biswanath district, Assam, awarded the death penalty to Mangal Paik for raping and murdering a five-year-old girl in December 2018 after he was found guilty under sections of 363, 376 (A), 302, 201 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under section 6 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

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India Today reports that the convicted man was a relative and went to the victim’s home for some work. Once there, he lured her to a jungle nearby (Dekorai tea garden area) saying that he’d give her a chocolate. After raping and killing her, he hid the body near a pond. The body was found after the family filed a complaint at Sootea police station.

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The Shillong Times quoted advocate Jahnabi Kalita saying,

“The accused person, Mangal Paik is a resident of Lokhra Burhagaon area of Sonitpur. He was a relative of the victim and had lured her to a place by promising her biscuits only to brutally rape and kill her. The victim’s body was kept hidden by the accused. The statements of 16 witnesses were recorded this year.”

On one hand, people believe that heinous crimes should be met with the harshest punishment. On the other, there are those who question if capital punishment really acts as a deterrent. What do you think?

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