A special POCSO court in Thane has sentenced a couple to 10 years in jail in connection with the repeated rape of a minor girl.

Special POCSO Judge Ruby Malvankar, in her order of November 29, also fined Mira Road residents Jitendra Tiwari and Namita Tiwari Rs 25,000 each.

The accused, in 2010, befriended the minor girl, who used to come to his the building in which he stayed since her mother and grandmother worked as housekeeping staff there, and then raped her several times, as per the prosecution represented by advocates Rekha Hiwrale and Varsha Chandane.

They said Jitendra Tiwari's wife encouraged her husband to sexually abuse the girl, who also got pregnant during this period.

The court said the couple was being sentenced to the minimum punishment under section 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act since the two are now senior citizens and are also facing other criminal cases.

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