UP Ex-Engineer, Wife Sentenced to Death for Exploiting 33 Children
UP Ex-Engineer, Wife Sentenced to Death for Exploiting 33 Children
A POCSO court in Banda hands death penalty to a former UP irrigation official and his wife for sexually exploiting 33 minors over a decade, with compensation ordered for victims.
A special court in Banda has sentenced a former junior engineer of the state’s Irrigation Department and his wife to death for sexually exploiting 33 minor boys over a decade, some as young as three. The POCSO court termed the crimes the 'rarest of rare' and found Ram Bhawan and his wife Durgawati guilty of systematically abusing the children between 2010 and 2020. The couple circulated over two lakh objectionable videos and photographs of the victims to nearly 47 countries via the internet.
They were convicted under provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act by the court of Additional District and Sessions Judge (POCSO) Pradeep Kumar Mishra. The prosecution said the offences included aggravated penetrative sexual assault, using a child for pornographic purposes, storage of pornographic material involving children, and abetment and criminal conspiracy. The court directed the Uttar Pradesh government to pay ₹10 lakh in compensation to each of the 33 victims and ordered that the cash seized from the accused’s house be distributed among the victims in equal proportion.
During the probe, it was revealed that Ram Bhawan, a resident of Naraini town in Banda district, had been living in a rented room in Chitrakoot district where the offences were allegedly committed, with his wife reportedly assisting him. Prosecutors said the couple lured the minors with games and gifts, subjecting them to physical and psychological abuse. The case has drawn attention to the online exploitation of children and the need for robust safeguards against such crimes, with advocates hopeful that this landmark verdict will deter future abuse and support survivor justice.
