Varavara Rao, Wife Forced To Sign Punchnama In Marathi: Son-In-Law
New Delhi, Aug 28 : A relative of poet Varavara Rao on Tuesday accused Pune Police of "forcing" him and his wife Hemalatha to sign a 'punchnama' in Marathi language.
Varavara Rao was arrested from his residence in Hyderabad by police from Pune and presented before a Nampally criminal court. Police are likely to shift him to Pune.
"Both Rao and his wife Hemalatha don't know Marathi... they were forced to sign on the punchnama written in Marathi," journalist N. Venugopal, the son-in-law of Rao, told the media here.
According to Venugopal, as per the law the punchnama -- a document prepared by police and signed by respectable witnesses -- should be in a language the accused is familiar with.
"Without any search warrant, they (police) entered his house, snatched away cell phones. They also disconnected the land line phone and intercom and kept Rao incommunicado for eight hours," he claimed.
As for Rao's health, Venugopal said: "He is 78-year-old, has so many ailments and needs regular medicines."
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Kerala: Court imposes 41-year jail term on man for sexual assault of minor
Kozhikode (Kerala) (PTI): A Kerala court on Wednesday sentenced a man to 41 years in prison for sexually assaulting a minor boy near Valayam in 2021.
Nadapuram Fast Track Special Court judge K Naushad Ali sentenced 64-year-old Panchara Musa, also known as Ganapathiyat Musa, under various provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), according to special public prosecutor Manoj Aroor.
As the sentences are to run concurrently, the convict will have to serve the highest term of 20 years’ imprisonment, SPP Aroor said. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 52,000 on Musa.
The incident took place in August 2021 when the accused allegedly took the 14-year-old boy to a bus stop in Valayam town and sexually assaulted him, the prosecutor said. The accused also gave Rs 50 to the boy, he added.
Following the incident, the boy and his father lodged a complaint at the Valayam police station.
A case under various provisions of the POCSO Act and the IPC was registered, and the accused was subsequently arrested, the SPP said.
The prosecution examined 16 witnesses and submitted 16 documents to substantiate its case against the accused, he added.
