Rajkot: An additional District and Sessions judge RR Chaudhary in Gujarat's Rajkot has sentenced a man to death for murdering a minor girl by stabbing her 34 times.
26-year-old Jayesh Sarvaiya killed the class 11 student after she refused to enter a relationship with him. He also attacked the girl's brother who tried to intervene during the attack which took place in March 2021. He was booked under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Special prosecutor Janak Patel cited that this was a "rarest of the rare case" as per the definition given by the Supreme Court in the Nirbhaya case. "The court awarded the death sentence and imposed a fine of ₹ 5,000 on the accused under Section 302 of the IPC. It was a murder that shook the entire community and hence, was taken seriously. The convict has been given a month's time for an appeal."
The incident took place in Jetalsar village in Jetpur. Jayesh has been harassing her and went to her house with a proposal. When the girl refused, he thrashed her. She tried to escape but he stabbed her multiple times outside her house. Locals have been observing bandhs and holding protests demanding the murderer get capital punishment.