Sikkim High Court Upholds 10-Year Sentence for Rape of Minor Who Died by Suicide

The Sikkim High Court has upheld a ten-year rigorous imprisonment sentence for a man convicted of sexually assaulting a minor girl who died by suicide in 2021. The division bench, comprising Chief Justice A. Muhamed Mustaque and Justice Bhaskar Raj Pradhan, dismissed the appeal and confirmed the trial court's verdict.

In its order, the court expressed deep concern over the mental health of children, particularly girl children. The judges noted the victim's suicide note, which detailed her ordeal, and stated that the crime was 'despicable, humiliating, deplorable, and intolerable.' They called upon the State to take proactive steps to protect the mental well-being of every child.

The prosecution presented a 'faultless' investigation, according to the court. The suicide note, identified by the victim's brother and confirmed by a forensic expert, specifically named the accused as the perpetrator. Medical records and witness testimony corroborated the details, establishing that the victim was a minor at the time of the offence.

The incident occurred on August 20, 2021. The minor girl returned home from school around noon. Later that day, she gave her father her phone to watch a movie. When he went to her room after the battery died, he found her deceased. The police filed an FIR for abetment of suicide, wrongful restraint, and rape under the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.

The trial court had convicted the accused on December 1, 2021, for sexual assault, sexual harassment, and abetment of suicide, sentencing him to ten years of rigorous imprisonment. The high court upheld the conviction, noting that the evidence proved the accused was responsible for the victim's suicide.