Ankleshwar Court Hands Death Penalty In ‘Rarest Of Rare’ Rape And Murder Case Of 10 Year Old Girl
Ankleshwar: In a milestone judgment, the Ankleshwar Additional Sessions Court on Friday sentenced 36-year-old Vijay Paswan a punishment of “hanging until death” for the abduction, rape, and murder of a 10-year-old girl, a case the court declared to fall under the “rarest of rare” category. This marks the first instance of capital punishment for such a crime in the district.
The trial was concluded in a record 72 days following the framing of charges. The brutal crime, committed on December 16, 2024, sparked public outrage and drew parallels with the 2012 Delhi gang rape. The young victim, the daughter of a migrant family from Jharkhand, died on December 23 at SSG Hospital in Vadodara after suffering severe injuries from the assault.
According to Special Public Prosecutor and Bharuch District Government Pleader P.B. Pandya, the child endured a “barbaric” assault. Paswan, a neighbor of the victim in the Jhagadia industrial area and a father himself, reportedly hit her with a stone, dragged her, threw her over a wall, and raped her. He inflicted bite and knife wounds on her face and caused fatal internal injuries with a sharp object. Despite undergoing multiple surgeries at Bharuch Civil Hospital and later in Vadodara, the girl could not be saved.
A total of 38 prosecution witnesses were examined, with none turning hostile. A critical piece of evidence was the dying declaration of the victim, recorded as she was being brought into Bharuch Civil Hospital, which played a pivotal role in the conviction. The court accepted the prosecution’s submission that the sheer brutality of the act met the threshold of the “rarest of rare” doctrine, justifying the death penalty.
Paswan was convicted under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including 137(1)(b) (kidnapping a child), 65(2) (rape of a minor under 12), 103(1) (murder), 109(1) (attempt to murder), and 118(1) (causing grievous hurt with dangerous weapons), among others. He was also charged under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Additionally, the court directed that the victim’s family be granted Rs 10 lakh as compensation under the Gujarat Victim Compensation Scheme. Pandya said, “The court categorically mentioned that the accused must be hanged unto death… It is a record verdict in the case that will send out a strong message in the society and deter criminals.”