Upholding a man’s conviction in a 39-year-old rape case, the Supreme Court has commiserated with the woman and her family, who had to wait so long for closure. “It is a matter of great sadness that this minor girl and her family have to go through nearly four decades of life, waiting to close this horrific chapter of her/their lives,” said the bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol, setting aside the Rajasthan High Court’s July 2013 verdict acquitting the man.
The woman, who was a minor in 1986, was raped by a 21-year-old man. In November 1987, he was convicted by a trial court and given a seven-year jail term.