Hyderabad, Aug 14 (IANS) A court in Telangana’s Nalgonda district on Thursday awarded a death sentence to a man for the rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl.

The Special POCSO court found the 24-year-old accused, a butcher, guilty in the case and pronounced the death sentence.

The court found M. Mukarram guilty under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1.10 lakh. POCSO Court in-charge Roja Ramani also ordered Rs 10 lakh compensation to the victim’s family.

The accused, who has a hearing and speech impairment, was provided with an interpreter during the court proceedings.

The shocking incident occurred in April 2013 in Nalgonda town. The accused had sexually assaulted the girl after luring her to his home. After the sexual assault, the accused strangled her to death and dumped the body in a drainage canal.

Based on a complaint from the girl’s family, One Town Police Station in Nalgonda had registered a missing case. During the investigation, police found the victim’s body. The accused was later identified and arrested.

A case under the POCSO Act and the IPC was registered against the accused. The trial lasted in the Nalgonda district court for 10 years.

After hearing the arguments, the in-charge judge of the Special POCSO court found the accused guilty and awarded him the death sentence.

The victim’s family hailed the court order. Police said they conducted a thorough investigation into the case and collected and produced all evidence before the court.

Last year, the Telangana High Court confirmed the death sentence awarded to a 30-year-old man, who was found guilty of murdering a five-year-old girl after abducting and raping her at Narsingi on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

The High Court confirmed the capital punishment pronounced by a local court in the 2017 case.

–IANS

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