A special court here sentenced a man to imprisonment for life for sexually assaulting his eight-year-old daughter, observing that his act amounted to “betrayal of faith in humanity”.

The court for cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act further noted that the crime committed by the accused was a clear case of “protector turning predator”.

Special judge Nazera Shaikh on Wednesday held the man guilty of the offence committed under relevant provisions of the IPC and POCSO Act.

The detailed order was made available on Friday.

The court, in its order, stated that in almost every culture, the father primarily has the role of a protector, provider and disciplinarian.

“The father-daughter relationship plays a vital role in a girl's journey to adulthood. A father is the first man in a girl's life that she will intimately know,” the special judge.

The father sets the standard for all other men in a girl’s life, she said, observing that the act of the accused is a “betrayal of faith in humanity”.

The court was of the view that the act committed by the accused is “graver and rare,” and therefore, it attracts deterrent punishment of imprisonment for life provided in provision of the POCSO Act.

According to the prosecution, the victim's mother had lodged a complaint against the accused at Shivaji Nagar police station in October 2020 against the complaint.

On the day of the incident, the victim's mother had gone out, on returning home, she heard the girl’s screams and saw her husband was sexually abusing the child.

She pushed the accused away and rescued the victim. The neighbours gathered and started thrashing the accused, the prosecution said.

One of the neighbours called the police, they came and took the accused to the police station and the mother then lodged a complaint.

The court relied on the testimony of the victim, her mother, and the investigating officers of the case, and considered the medical evidence.

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