Belagavi: The additional district and sessions court and the special fast-track Pocso court announced the death sentence and a Rs 10 lakh fine in a rape and murder case. Bharatesh Mirji of Paramanandwadi in Raibag taluk is the sentenced convict. On Oct 15, 2019, the convict, who took the girl home on the pretext of giving her chocolates, sexually assaulted her and strangled her to death when she screamed and resisted. To destroy evidence, he tied a stone to the girl with a sari, and threw her body in a well next to the house.The victim’s father filed a complaint at the Kudachi police station regarding the girl’s disappearance. Police found the girl’s body in the well near Paramanandwadi village, with the help of a sniffer dog.Police investigated the case under the guidance of the then SP Laxman Nimbargi and filed a chargesheet. Judge CM Pushpalata, who conducted the trial, announced the verdict on Friday. The verdict ordered that the District Legal Services Authority provide Rs 10 lakh as compensation to the parents of the murdered girl. Prosecutor LV Patil represented the govt.
