A SPECIAL court in Malda on Friday sentenced a former school teacher to life imprisonment in connection with the rape of a minor girl – the first conviction in a 2021 post-poll violence case probed by the CBI. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the accused, identified as Rafikul Islam, a retired government school teacher.

As many as 61 cases of murder and crimes against women – specifically rape or attempted rape – during the post-poll violence in West Bengal following the declaration of the 2021 Assembly poll results were handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation by the Calcutta High Court.

In one such case, Rafikul Islam lured the girl, who was playing in a mango orchard, by offering her money and raped her on the evening of June 4, 2021, the CBI investigation found.

The CBI filed a chargesheet against him. Special Public Prosecutor for the CBI, Amitava Maitra, presented the case supported by eyewitness testimony of the victim and her friend, also a minor.

The additional district and sessions judge, on Friday, awarded life imprisonment to Rafikul Islam under the POCSO Act and Section 376AB of the Indian Penal Code, a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

The court also directed the state government to hand over a compensation of Rs 3 lakh to the victim.

“This is the first post-poll violence case in which the trial has concluded and the same has resulted in a conviction,” the spokesperson said.

After taking over the cases, the CBI constituted special investigation teams by drawing officers from across the country and also appointed special counsel for expeditious trials, the spokesperson added.

The victim’s mother told mediapersons, “He (Rafikul) is a Trinamool Congress worker and we are BJP supporters. After the Assembly poll results in 2021, he raped my daughter. After today’s verdict, we are happy but we had hoped that he would get capital punishment. After that incident, life changed for us. We are so scared of taking our children out.”

On July 2, the court had pronounced its judgment convicting the accused.

– WITH PTI