Assam: Bilasipara Court Awards Death Penalty to Man for Raping, Killing 4-Year-Old

A court in Assam’s Bilasipara has awarded the death penalty to Utpal Roy after convicting him in the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl in Chapar in 2023. The verdict was delivered by the Additional District and Sessions Court in Bilasipara, nearly three years after the incident at Krishnakali Tea Estate in Chapar . The four-year-old girl had gone missing from her home in September 2023, following which police launched a search operation. After three days of search, the girl’s body was recovered from inside the tea garden with the help of a sniffer dog. The body was recovered in the presence of a magistrate and a forensic team as the investigation proceeded. According to the prosecution case, Utpal Roy had allegedly taken the child into the tea garden and raped her. He was also accused of killing the child in an attempt to conceal the crime and leaving her body inside the tea estate. Based on a complaint filed by the girl’s family, Chapar Police registered a case bearing number 179/23 and began an investigation. The case was registered under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, including Sections 363(A), 376, 302 and 201, along with Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences ( POCSO ) Act. After examining the evidence and proceedings in the case, the Bilasipara court convicted Roy and sentenced him to death under the POCSO Act. The prosecution was led by government advocate Tapan Bhatt. The investigation was initially conducted by police officer Arpana Talukdar and was later taken over by Ranjit Kakati. Deepjyoti Ingti subsequently submitted the chargesheet in the case. The verdict comes nearly three years after the child was killed and is being seen as a significant ruling in a case involving sexual assault and murder of a minor. Also Read: 16-Year-Old UP Girl Allegedly Gang-Raped Inside Sleeper Bus