SHILLONG, April 8: The High Court of Meghalaya has dismissed a criminal appeal filed by former MLA Julius Kitbok Dorphang and upheld the judgment of a trial court which sentenced him to 25 years in jail for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl in 2017.
Dorphang was then serving as an MLA.
Dismissing the appeal on Wednesday, a division bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W Diengdoh said the term of imprisonment of 25 years awarded by the trial court does not call for any interference.
According to the court, the appellant was aged about 52 years at the time of commission of repeated acts of rape on the same woman in Umiam.
“By imposing a sentence of 25 years of imprisonment, the trial court has ensured that by the time the appellant is let loose again in society, his libido would have been sufficiently lessened by age and adequately chastened by the punishment. He will then no longer be able to unleash his lust or indulge in any further virile bravado,” the court said.
It also said that nothing brought out by the defence in course of trial could detract from the survivor’s credible account of how she suffered at the hands of the appellant. “Indeed, one does not find any redeeming feature in the defence and the manner in which the survivor described to have been treated by the appellant herein has appropriately resulted in the tenure of imprisonment and the fine of Rs 15 lakh being slapped on the appellant by the trial court…
“There does not appear to be any glaring infirmity in the judgment of conviction or the consequent sentence pronounced against the appellant on the basis thereof. The trial court dealt with the material before it at great length and justly arrived at the right conclusion by using the appropriate tools of assessment,” the court said.
Making it clear that the State will ensure the continued well-being of the survivor, at least till she reaches the age of 25 years, the court said the fine, if paid, and a total amount of compensation not less than Rs 20 lakh, should be provided by the State to the survivor by way of investments that would mature on a periodic basis for her to receive the same.
“In other words, the State will pay a further Rs 5 lakh to the survivor by way of compensation, in addition to the sum of Rs 15 lakh that she receives from the fine. If the appellant does not pay the fine and serves a further five years of rigorous imprisonment, the State will make over the equivalent amount of Rs 15 lakh to the survivor. The total amount of Rs 20 lakh must be invested in the name of the survivor within three months from date with the State taking adequate measures to ensure that the entire amount is not squandered in a hurry or the survivor is cheated of any part of it by any other person,” the court ordered.
Further, it said the State will be responsible for taking care of the survivor’s all medical needs free of cost and befitting a Grade-II officer of the State for at least the next 20 years.
In addition, if there is any special programme or working opportunity that is available or for which the survivor qualifies or if there is any late education programme for women where the survivor may be accommodated, the State should provide all assistance to the survivor to lead a remaining normal and healthy life, the court ordered.
“The society at large owes a huge apology to the brave young survivor for having failed one of its most precious and tender,” the court added.
