A Kolkata court gave Rajib Ghosh a death sentence for raping and attempting to kill a seven-month-old child.
Judge Indrila Mukhopadhyay Mitra, while reading out the verdict, declared, “This is a rarest of rare cases. There cannot be any other punishment that the court can think of.”
A day earlier, on Monday, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) court in Bankshall had found the accused guilty of kidnapping, raping, and attempting to murder a seven-month-old child from the Burtolla neighborhood of north Kolkata.
Expanding with more detail and flow:
Notably, the court delivered its verdict within just 75 days of the man’s detention—an unusually swift timeline for such a grave and complex case. This rapid resolution reflected both the urgency of the matter and the court’s intent to deliver justice without delay, especially given the horrific nature of the crime and its impact on public consciousness.
Subsequently, on Tuesday, a special POCSO court in Kolkata handed down the death sentence. The judge found the man guilty of the brutal assault and attempted murder of a seven-month-old child—an act so heinous that it left both the courtroom and the wider community shaken. The court emphasized that such violence against the most vulnerable members of society warranted the harshest possible punishment under the law.
Death Penalty under POSCO Act
After hearing the final submissions from both the defense counsel and the state’s public prosecutor, the court delivered its sentence. The prosecutor had pressed for the death penalty, citing the brutality of the case as one of the “rarest of the rare.” Ultimately, Judge Indrila Mukherjee found Rajib Ghosh guilty under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code—Sections 65(2), 140(4), 137(2), and 118—as well as Section 6 of the POCSO Act. POCSO Act.
Experts and Lawyers opinions about death penalty
Legal experts pointed out that the penalty in such cases ranged from 20 years behind bars to life imprisonment and even death. The judge chose the death penalty, reasoning that the abuse of the seven-month-old girl was extremely rare. News Updates
Special public prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee sought death pentaly for the accused.“The defense lawyer argued that the accused was young and has elderly parents at home. To counter that argument , we cited several Supreme Court rulings, Chatterjee said.
Nirbhaya case: Death penalty served after 7 years
In the landmark 2012 Nirbhaya case the Delhi gang rape that shook the nation—the courts imposed the death penalty on the convicted rapists. The verdict triggered nationwide protests and ignited a powerful discourse on the use of capital punishment for rape in India.
Under the Indian Penal Code, courts can invoke the death penalty in such cases. Section 376A allows it when the crime results in the victim’s death or leaves them in a vegetative state, while Section 376E applies to repeat offenders who commit rape with extreme violence.
Nevertheless, even with these clauses, rape trials seldom end in the death penalty; instead, life in prison is the norm.
