Delhi Police on Thursday sought the maximum sentence for the five people convicted for the gang-rape of a 52-year-old Danish woman near the New Delhi railway station in 2014.
Advertisement
“All the five convicts have been sentenced to rigorous life imprisonment for their offences”, additional public prosecutor Atul Shrivastava, told Reuters at the court. The Danish woman, who came to India on January 1, had gone to visit a museum on Tuesday evening but lost her way to her hotel in Paharganj, a tourist hub in the heart of Delhi.
Nine men were accused of robbing and raping the 52-year-old Danish woman at knife-point in Delhi. Three who were younger than 18 at the time of the attack were handed to the Juvenile Justice Board to remain in custody until they are 18 and reformed.
The judge convicted them for the offences under sections 376 (D) (gang rape), 395 (dacoity), 366 (kidnapping), 342 (wrongful confinement), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 34 (common intention) of IPC.
January 14, 2014: Danish woman loses way, approaches a group of several men asking for directions.
He said that the offence had “caused a dent to the reputation of the country”.
The minimum punishment for gang rape is now 20 years in jail. Request is sought for the victim to take part in the probe. One accused died, while the minors are being tried in a juvenile court.
She left India soon after the incident and returned in 2015 to record her testimony before the court and to identify the accused.
The five men have the right to appeal the sentence in a higher court.
Advertisement
Besides sentencing these convicts for the offence of gangrape, the court also awarded varying jail terms to them for other offences for which they were held guilty.
