INDRESWAR DEWRI Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. A. Gautam, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. P.S. Lahkar, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor for the State respondent and Mr. U. Choudhury, learned Legal Aid Counsel for respondent No. 2.

(2.) This is a criminal appeal filed against the Judgment and Order dtd. 2/5/2022 passed by the learned Court of Sessions Judge, Morigaon in Sessions Case No. 72/2021 under Sec. 376(2)(L) as well as Sec. 436 of the IPC. By the said Judgment and Order, the appellant was convicted under Sec. 376(1) IPC and was sentenced to undergo R.I for a period of 10 years with fine of Rs.5,000.00 and in default, to undergo S.I for another period of 1 month. It is this conviction and sentence order that the appellant has challenged in the present appeal.

(3.) The FIR was lodged on 21/3/2021 by the victim disclosing that the appellant was living in a house of his in-laws and that on 20/3/2021 at about 12 noon, when the victim went to the house of the appellant for taking bath at his hand pump, the appellant lured her, took her inside his house and after gagging her mouth, forcibly established physical relationship with her. It was also stated in the FIR that the victim was a physically challenged woman and that after the incident, the victim narrated the same to the neighbouring people and on being informed, the neighbours held a meeting but since the appellant did not appear there, the meeting was not conclusive. It was also stated in the FIR that the appellant transferred his family members to some other place and set his house on fire and that he too fled away from the place of occurrence.