PANAJI
A fast-track court in Panaji has sentenced a man to rigorous imprisonment for raping his former colleague for around five years. The man, identified as Asif Khwaja alias Asif Khan was lately convicted for the offence that occurred between 2009-2014 and registered with Old Goa police in 2014. He was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in an order by Judge Shabnam Shaikh on Thursday.
The victim had complained that Asif forced her to have sexual relations with him on the pretext of getting married to her. On various occasions and at various places from 2009, the accused sexually assaulted her until 2014 when she was informed about his marital status.
The victim explained to the court that she was perturbed by the incident and that the accused had also borrowed Rs 1.55 lakh from her which he never returned, although promised.
The Old Goa police had filed a charge sheet against the accused under sections 376 (rope), 406 (criminal breach of trust), and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code.
The court, on hearing both parties, convicted and sentenced him for all the offences which will run concurrently. The accused is sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for 10 years and to pay a fine of Rs 1 lakh and in default to pay a fine to undergo simple imprisonment of two months, on charges of rape.
He is further sentenced to one year of simple imprisonment and a Rs 20,000 fine for the offence under section 406 IPC, and 6 months imprisonment and a Rs 10,000 fine for the offence under section 323 IPC.
