Itanagar: The District and Sessions Court in Arunachal Pradesh’s Yupia has sentenced a man to life imprisonment for raping a woman and robbing her of ₹35,000, observing that the convict’s criminal conduct and past record did not warrant any leniency.
Sessions Judge Dr Hirendra Kashyap on Thursday convicted and sentenced one Aftab Sheikh (44), a native of Ambiri Village, Biswanath Charali in Assam’s Sonitpur district, under Section 376(1) of the Indian Penal Code, imposing a life sentence along with a fine of ₹20,000.
The case dates back to May 2016, when Sheikh allegedly offered a lift to the victim during nighttime and took her to an isolated location, where he raped her and attempted to orchestrate a gang rape by summoning an accomplice.
The attempt was foiled after the victim’s family members arrived at the spot. Before fleeing the scene, Sheikh reportedly robbed the victim of ₹35,000 — her earnings from selling traditional ornaments that day.
Rejecting the defence plea for leniency on grounds of his youth and his wife’s ill health, the court held that the convict’s conduct demonstrated “involvement in organized crime” and a tendency to “change identity to mislead investigations.”
The court noted that Sheikh, who also went by the alias Aryan Sharma, had been acquitted in a separate bike theft case only on benefit of doubt due to lack of CCTV evidence. He had also absconded during trial proceedings in the current case and was re-arrested only after repeated non-bailable warrants were issued.
Further, Sheikh was found to be an accused in another pending sessions case related to alleged conspiracy and preparation for a bank robbery.
“The conduct of the convict does not inspire this court for any leniency in sentencing,” the judge observed, ruling out any relief under Section 360 CrPC or the Probation of Offenders Act.
The court also ordered that the period of nearly 3 years and 11 months already spent in custody during investigation and trial be set off from the sentence under Section 428 of CrPC.
Additionally, the matter has been referred to the District Legal Services Authority for awarding compensation to the victim under the Arunachal Pradesh Victim Compensation Scheme, 2011.
Aftab Sheikh was informed of his right to appeal before the Gauhati High Court.
The court ordered the immediate issuance of the warrant for sentence execution to District Jail Jully and directed that a copy of the order be forwarded to the District Magistrate and SP of Itanagar.
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