UPENDRA BARIK Vs. STATE OF ODISHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant from inside the jail has preferred this appeal challenging the judgment of conviction and order of sentence dated 03.10.2008 passed by the learned Ad hoc Additional. Sessions Judge (F.T.C.) Padampur in Criminal Trial No. 163/9 of 2007-2008.

(2.) Prosecution case in short is that on 02.04.2007 around 7.00 PM when the P.W.7 had gone to attend the call of nature, the appellant with others gagged her mouth by handkerchief and forcibly took her away. It is stated that for the said reason, the victim lost her sense and when she regained, she found herself in the house of one Abhina Barik who is the uncle of the appellant. It is the further case of the prosecution that the victim was kept confined in the house and being forced to live in one room with the appellant in the night, she was ravished by the appellant. The victim was then taken to another village in the State of Jharkhand and keeping her there in a house, the appellant again raped her. The father of the victim, P.W.5 has lodged the FIR on 03.04.2007 informing that since the previous evening, the victim, P.W.7 had not returned from the place where she had gone to attend the call of nature and despite on thorough search in the village and nearby, she was not found. An information having come to be received by them that the appellant was also absent in the village the same was so intimated thereby raising a suspicion on the role of the appellant in kidnapping her daughter, P.W.7.

(3.) The trial court having framed the charge for the above offences, the trial commenced. During trial the appellant took the plea of denial.