One day uncle called me and I went to him. He took me near a tree and assaulted me. He kicked me on my stomach and beat me on my head, face and also on my private parts that led to heavy bleeding.
Hyderabad: “One day uncle called me and I went to him. He took me near a tree and assaulted me. He kicked me on my stomach and beat me on my head, face and also on my private parts that led to heavy bleeding.”
These spine-chilling words of a six-year-old girl shocked everyone in the courtroom of XII Additional Sessions Judge T. Anitha.
This led to the conviction and 25-year rigorous imprisonment of Rajanala Ramesh, a ragpicker, for sexual assault of a minor.
The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on Ramesh and further sentenced him to five years for kidnapping and a fine of ₹5,000, along with another ₹5,000 fine for voluntarily causing hurt. The court awarded ₹7 lakh as compensation to the victim.
The 26-year-old Ramesh was found guilty of kidnap, voluntarily causing simple hurt and for committing aggravated penetrative sexual assault.
The incident came to be known when the cries of a small child, assaulted and abandoned between parked cars, grabbed the attention of the owner of a boutique in Nallakunta. On rushing there, he saw the girl suffering from bleeding injuries. He alerted the police, which led to the arrest of Ramesh.
Ramesh had lured the victim, who lives with her mother near the Kacheguda railway station, with the promise of food. The victim, who was then taken to Street No. 4 in Nallakunta, was assaulted sexually and beaten with a glass bottle and stones.
“This is rape and a brutal attack on a six-year-old girl. The young victim bravely identified the accused. This played a crucial role in the conviction. Eyewitness (boutique owner) statements and CCTV footage aided in the conviction,” observed A. Ram Reddy, additional public prosecutor.
