A special court here has sentenced a 29-year-old man to life imprisonment for raping a minor, who is his close relative, around two years ago on the pretext of helping her get rid of an "evil spirit".

The 17-year-old girl was raped in Mahavaveer Nagar area in the city in March 2022.

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court on Friday observed that parents should be cautious and keep taking feedback of the activities of their children.

"The parents should also not trust anyone blindly, nor relatives to an extent that they commit heinous crime like rape with them," the court observed.

The girl was raped by her relative who also recorded the act and blackmailed her with the video to force himself on her at multiple occasions, public prosecutor (PP) at POCSO Court-3 Lalit Kumar Sharma said on Saturday.

The parents of the survivor believed she was in the grip of an evil spirit and allowed their relative -- a self-acclaimed occultist -- to stay at their home and "cure" their daughter, he said.

On the pretext of curing the girl through black magic, the relative raped her and made a video of the act and threatened her of dire consequences if she disclosed the incident to anyone, Sharma said, adding that the relative raped her several times.

The minor lodged a report at Mahaveer Nagar police station on March 22, 2022 following which the police registered a case under sections of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the POCSO Act and arrested the accused. However, he was granted bail a few months ago, the public prosecutor said.

Statements of 13 witnesses were recorded during the trial and 32 documents were produced before the court, he added.

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