Bhubaneswar, April 10 (IANS) In a significant development, a court in Odisha’s Angul district sentenced a 40-year-old man to death for the brutal murder of a minor girl aged merely 4 years 10 months, following sexual assault under the Nisha Industrial Police Station area of the district in 2025.

The convict, Babula Jena (40), is a resident of Dehury Sahi, Jereng village under Jarpada police limits of the Angul district.

The Special POCSO Court found the accused guilty of offences under sections 137(2), 103(1), 65(2), and 238(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 6 of the POCSO Act.

“On March 13, 2025, the minor victim went missing while playing in front of her house. Despite extensive searches by family and neighbours, she could not be traced. Her father later lodged a missing report at the Industrial Police Station on March 14, 2025. Tragically, the child’s body was recovered on March 15, 2025, under a Mahua tree near her residence,” informed the Angul Police in a press note on Friday.

Following recovery, the minor girl’s body was sent to the hospital for a postmortem. The post-mortem examination confirmed death due to compression of the neck, with findings consistent with forcible penetrative sexual assault.

Locals suspect the involvement of Babula, a mason, in the heinous crime, as he was present when the victim was playing outside and later went missing around the same time as the girl.

The accused Babula Jena was identified and arrested on March 17, 2025, within just four days of the incident. He was forwarded to court on March 18, 2025. The police, during the investigation, found that the convict, after kidnapping the minor, took her to his residence, where he brutally raped her. Babula later strangulated the minor victim to death and disposed of her body near the village.

The court, after examining the evidence, including witness statements as well as medical and scientific reports, found the accused guilty of the offence and pronounced the judgment on Friday.

The court has also asked the Angul District Legal Services Authority to take necessary steps to provide Rs 10 lakh compensation to the victim’s parent. During the hearing, Dillip Kumar Das appeared on behalf of the prosecution as the Special Public Prosecutor.

–IANS

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