20-Year Jail Term for Minor’s Rapist in Odisha’s Nabarangpur
Nabarangpur, (OT Webdesk) – August 17, 2025: In a landmark judgment under the POCSO Act, the Additional District & Sessions Judge-cum-Special POCSO Judge, Basudev Acharya, sentenced Tikendra Jani of Pandikot village to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a minor girl and abandoning her after she became pregnant.
Jani had lured the girl into a physical relationship under the false promise of marriage. When she was five months pregnant, he refused to marry her, prompting the victim’s family to file a complaint at Papdahandi police station on September 12, 2024.
The case (No. 179/24) led to a trial (TR No. 43/24) where 17 witnesses testified.
The court imposed a Rs 10,000 fine, with an additional six-month sentence in case of non-payment. The District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) was also directed to compensate the survivor with Rs 14.5 lakh.
Special Public Prosecutor Sachi Nandan Swain led the prosecution.
This verdict underscores the judiciary’s commitment to justice for survivors of sexual violence.
