Bhopal Court Awards 10 Life Terms to 78-Year-Old in POCSO Case

A court in Bhopal has sentenced 78-year-old Pyare Miyan to life imprisonment 10 times in a case involving the sexual exploitation of five minor girls. POCSO Special Judge Kumudini Patel also imposed a fine of 77.64 lakh rupees on him. All the sentences will run concurrently.

The court also sentenced his associate, Rabiya B, to 20 years in prison. The case involved allegations that minor girls were lured with promises of jobs, sexually exploited and later blackmailed using videos recorded through hidden cameras.

The most painful aspect of the case was the death of one of the victims. The girl, who was allegedly facing exploitation, fear and pressure, consumed poison and died by suicide. The court has ordered that her parents be given compensation of 10 lakh rupees.

The case involved five minor girls, and the prosecution said that Pyare Miyan had been exploiting minor girls since 2014. According to the prosecution, he used the promise of helping them get jobs to lure them into his trap. His associate, Rabiya B, allegedly took the girls to him. The prosecution said that their trust and helplessness were used to target them.

On the night of 11 July 2020, police found five girls in suspicious circumstances. Information that came to light during counselling revealed the seriousness of the case. The girls told investigators that they had been called to a flat in Shahpura on the pretext of celebrating a birthday.

According to the allegations presented by the prosecution, the girls were given alcohol at the flat and raped. The prosecution further said that their sexual exploitation continued at different locations later as well. The allegations covered repeated abuse and the use of fear to keep the victims under pressure.

The investigation also brought to light the alleged use of hidden cameras inside the accused’s flat. According to the prosecution, videos of the girls were recorded through these cameras. The videos were then allegedly used to blackmail them and stop them from speaking about the abuse.

A pistol was also recovered from the flat. The prosecution alleged that it was used to threaten and intimidate the victims. The case therefore involved not only allegations of sexual exploitation, but also the alleged misuse of technology, blackmail and the use of fear to control the girls.

The prosecution said that the girls were first drawn in through an offer of help and employment. The same trust was then allegedly turned against them. The allegations indicated that the victims were kept silent through a combination of recorded videos, threats and pressure.

While delivering the verdict, the court commented on the seriousness and cruelty of the offences. The court said that at an age when an elderly person is expected to protect and care for girls, the accused had instead become a source of fear and insecurity for them.

The court observed that his acts had harmed not only the future of the girls but had also deeply damaged social trust. Taking into account the seriousness of the case, the court sentenced Pyare Miyan to life imprisonment 10 times.

According to Public Prosecutor Piyush Singh Rajput, the sentence of life imprisonment 10 times in a single case has been described as the first such instance in the country. The sentences, however, will run concurrently.

This was not the first POCSO case in which Pyare Miyan received a life sentence. He had earlier been sentenced to life imprisonment in another POCSO case on 7 March 2022. That case involved allegations that he raped his step-granddaughter after giving her a stupefying substance and arranged an abortion when she became pregnant.

An appeal against that earlier judgment is pending in the High Court. The present case includes the allegations involving five minor girls, the alleged blackmail through videos and the suicide of one victim.

The court’s order also recognised the continuing impact on the victim’s family. The parents of the girl who died by suicide will receive 10 lakh rupees as compensation. The other victims also faced severe mental trauma, according to the details of the case.

The case has raised serious questions about the protection of children and the need for vigilance by families, society and the administration. The allegations show how promises of employment, pressure and fear were used to trap and control minor girls.

The sentence makes clear that offences involving the safety of children cannot be treated lightly. For the victims and their families, however, justice also includes protection, dignity and the support they need over a long period.