The special court that tried the Aluva child rape and murder case termed it as a case belonging to the ‘rarest of rare’ category to award the death penalty to the accused Asafak Alam.
The prosecution could successfully establish the guilt of the accused on oral, documentary, digital, scientific and circumstantial evidence. Though there were no eyewitnesses to the commission of rape and murder by the accused, the DNA report connected the accused with the alleged offences. There were no mitigating circumstances that could have benefited the convict in the case, the court held.
The judge felt that the convict would commit many graver offences and evolve as a threat to society, especially minor girl children, if let free. The act of committing multiple rape on a five-year-old girl has to be considered as a serious and grave offence requiring adequate sentence proportionate to its gravity, the court felt.
The “deceitful method employed by the convict to gain the custody of the victim and taking her away by giving sweet drinks and claiming that the child was his daughter indicated the premeditated and purposeful act of violating the trust of the innocent child.” The accused was not able to explain any circumstances for the death of the child after he had taken her custody and moved to the place where the body was found. These factors, along with a host of scientific evidence, prompted the court to conclude that the accused had raped the victim and caused her death by strangulation.
K. Soman, the special judge, felt that there was a strong need to take stringent measures to deter the rising trend of child sex abuse in the country. The alleged incident was a premeditated one. The health and mental condition of the accused was normal as indicated in the report of the jail superintendent, the court noted.
The court informed the convict of his right of appeal before the High Court of Kerala. The convict can file an appeal within 30 days of the trial court’s judgment. The court committed the accused to Central Prison, Viyyur.
