New Delhi: A woman, who pushed a minor girl into prostitution after luring her to the city on promise of a job, was sent to seven years in jail by a Delhi court, which said she forced the victim "into sex trade despite herself being mother of a girl".
Additional Sessions Judge Virender Bhat, however, gave the minimum sentence prescribed under the law considering family background of the convict, Ratna.
"Keeping in view the circumstances, in which the convict had been indulging in illegal sex trade and the gravity of the offence committed by her, she deserves a very harsh sentence.
"However, her family background as canvassed by her counsel during the course of arguments, does persuade me to inflict only minimum sentence upon her which is prescribed for the offence, for which she has been convicted," the judge said which also imposed a cost of Rs 3,000 on the convict.
Ratna was arrested on a complaint made by the girl before Child Welfare Committee in November 2012.
The girl alleged that she was lured to Delhi on promise of a job at a hotel, but was forced in the business of a flesh trade.
"It is established by the evidence that accused Ratna had procured the prosecutrix, a minor aged between 16 to 18 years, for the purpose of prostitution, induced her to go from place to place for the said purpose and was living on the earnings of the prosecutrix," the court said while convicting Ratna.
The judge also said, "The crime committed by the convict is a very serious and grave. She has ruined the life of a minor girl by forcing her into sex trade despite herself being mother of a girl child.
"The mental agony and physical torture faced by the girl during the said ordeal is not difficult to imagine," the judge added.
The court, meanwhile, acquitted three other persons saying there was no evidence to held them guilty for the offence.
