A fast track court in Udaipur on Wednesday sentenced a guest house owner to life imprisonment for rape of a 40-year-old British journalist last December and fined him Rs25,000 while also convicting him for house-trespass to commit an offence punishable with life in prison, the Hindu has reported.
Parbat Singh, owner of Pardesi Guest House in Ambamata area of Udaipur, criminally assaulted the freelance journalist on the night of December 23 when she asked for an extra blanket. The 32-year-old man forced his way into the room on the pretext of supplying the blanket and raped the woman.
Additional District and Sessions Judge (Fast Track) B. K. Jain convicted Parbat Singh under Sections 376 (rape) and 450 (house-trespass) of the Indian Penal Code and awarded seven years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.10,000 under the latter. Both the sentences will run concurrently.
Police arrested Parbat Singh on January 9 this year after the journalist sent an e-mail to the British High Commission in New Delhi detailing the incident and seeking its intervention in the matter. The journalist informed the High Commission that she had arrived in Udaipur on December 19 and stayed at the guest house where she was raped.
A case was registered at the Ambamata police station in Udaipur after the British High Commission took up the matter with the State police and asked for an investigation.
The police completed the probe promptly after arresting the accused and the prosecution filed the charge sheet in the court on January 14. The court heard the prosecution, the defence and 14 witnesses produced by the prosecution before convicting the accused.
