Man receives triple death sentence for murder and rape of 5-year-old girl

In a first and rare incident, a man was sentenced to triple death penalty for kidnapping, raping and murdering a five-year-old child in Kamleshpur, 20 kilometers from Pune. The accused, Sanjay Puri, had committed the crime on December 7, 2019. The act sparked outrage and many demanded immediate intervention from the court. Finally, the Additional Sessions Court sentenced Sanjay to triple death penalty.

According to reports, Judge SR Padwal found Puri guilty under IPC sections of kidnapping, murder, rape of a child and rape by a person of trust or authority. The judge also imposed corresponding sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Abuse (POCSO) Act.

The incident and the vedict

The court sentenced Sanjay to death for murder and imposed a fine of Rs 15,000. He received multiple death sentences under Section 376 (AB) (rape of a child) and Section 6 of the POCSO Act (aggravated sexual assault by penetration).

“The death penalty will be carried out subject to confirmation by the Bombay High Court. All essential sentences will be served concurrently,” the judge said in his verdict.

Prashant Sathianathan, a public prosecutor, narrated the incident to TOI. On December 6, 2019, the girl was alone at home while her mother went to work. When her mother returned home from work, she did not find her daughter. The family decided not to look for the girl, assuming that she was with her grandmother. However, when the girl turned up only the next morning, the family started searching for her.

On December 7, 2019, at around 11 a.m., the family reported the girl missing at the Kamleshpur police station. The police immediately launched a manhunt and filed a kidnapping complaint. On December 8, 2019, a farmer discovered the girl’s body in a field.

The medical examination revealed that the girl had been sexually abused. Her head showed injuries caused by a boulder that was lying next to her body.

Further investigation revealed that Sanjay Puri was present during the abduction of the girl and was immediately arrested. Puri lured the girl to the field and gagged her mouth with a T-shirt and a stick. He then sexually assaulted her and crushed her skull with the boulder.

The judge has asked the duty officer of Kamleshpur police station to assist the girl’s family in their claim for compensation before the State Legal Aid Commission.