Man gets life imprisonment in rape-murder case of minor in Nagaland

Our Reporter

Dimapur, Oct. 7 (EMN): The accused in the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl in 2015 in Dimapur was sentenced to life imprisonment on October 7, more than five years after the horrific incident took place.

The principal district and session judge, Dimapur, Y Longkumer, in her 45-page judgement convicted the accused, one Chandra Mardi for the heinous crime and sentenced him to life imprisonment, an update informed on Wednesday.

Speaking to Eastern Mirror, the special public prosecutor, Dimapur, Hutoi Yeptho, who conducted the prosecution case, informed that the convicted man was a labourer involved in construction work at Christian Institute of Health Sciences and Research (CIHSR) in Dimapur.

“On April 4 (2015) he did not turn up for work and on the same day the minor girl went missing; her body was found the next day in the hospital compound around 5 am,” informed Yeptho adding that Mardi was arrested the following day, on April 5.

Yeptho informed that a criminal case was lodged at the Central Jail in Dimapur since his arrest in 2015.

“It is one of the rare cases where both rape and murder is involved especially of a minor; it is one of the most significant cases in Nagaland,” said Yeptho.

The public prosecutor further shared that the criminal has been convicted under three sections 302 IPC and sentenced to life imprisonment, under section 376 (2)  IPC for 10 years imprisonment and under section 6 POCSO Act for 10 years imprisonment and will be a “concurrent punishment.” The court also ordered for payment of compensation under section 357-A Cr.PC to be made to the victim’s parents.

“There were circumstantial evidences and the prosecution has proved the case beyond reasonable doubt. The Prosecution has examined 13 prosecution witnesses and proved the accused to be guilty,” said Yeptho.

“This conviction should be a lesson to the criminals in Nagaland; prosecutors here are taking heinous crimes very seriously and working hard to bring justice to victims of such crimes,” shared Yeptho.