MURUGESAN Vs. INSPECTOR OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has filed this petition to suspend the sentence imposed against him in S.C.No.53 of 2001 on the file of the Kanyakumari Fast Track Mahila Court, Nagercoil (Camp Couirt, Kuzhithurai), dtd. 3/3/2023 pending disposal of the Criminal Appeal.

(2.) The brief facts of the prosecution case: The petitioner was working as a lorry driver under the father of the victim girl. At the time of occurrence, the victim girl was studying 9th standard. On 11/5/1998 the mother of the victim girl lodged a complaint against the petitioner that the petitioner kidnapped the victim girl. During investigation, it was revealed that on 11/5/1998 at 7.00 p.m the petitioner along with three other accused kidnapped the victim girl in a car and proceeded to Thiruvananthapuram Railway Station, all the accused took the victim girl to Mumbai by train where they stayed two months and the petitioner committed rape forcibly and threatened not to reveal. Thereafter, the petitioner took the victim girl to Chennai and stayed in a relative house of the petitioner where also the petitioner committed rape, later on, 22/9/1998 the victim girl took all her belongings and came back to native on 23/8/1998, the police secured the victim girl. The respondent police registered the FIR in Crime No.309 of 1998 for the offence under Sec. 363 of IPC. P.W.10 - Inspector of Police did investigation and laid a charge sheet. The petitioner was charged for the offence under Ss. 363, 366A, 342, 376 r/w 120B of IPC.

(3.) To prove the charge, the prosecution examined 10 witnesses as P.W.1 to P.W.10 and marked 18 exhibits as Ex.P1 to Ex.P18. M.O.1 was marked. The petitioner/accused has not examined any witness and not marked any document. After considering both sides evidences and both side arguments, the Trial Court has found the petitioner/accused guilty for the offence under Ss. u/s 376, 366, 363, 342 of IPC and convicted and sentenced him to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 8 years and to pay a fine of Rs.2,000.00, in default, to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 12 months for the offence under Sec. 376 of IPC; convicted and sentenced him to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 5 years and to pay a fine of Rs.2,000.00, in default, to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 12 months for the offence under Sec. 366 of IPC; convicted and sentenced him to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 2 years and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000.00, in default, to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 3 months for the offence under Sec. 363 of IPC and convicted and sentenced him to undergo Rigorous Imprisonment for a period of 6 months for the offence under Sec. 342 of IPC and directing the sentences to run concurrently by passing the impugned judgment dtd. 3/3/2023.