DEHRADUN: A Pocso court in Dehradun has sentenced a young footballer to three years of rigorous imprisonment for “kidnapping” a 17-year-old girl he met during sports training. The girl had come to Dehradun with her father to take the NEET exam in July 2022, and she eloped with him.
Monu Kumar, who was 18 at the time, met the girl at a sports stadium in Joshimath, where they both trained regularly. After the NEET exam, the girl, then 17.5 years old, willingly traveled with Monu to Delhi via Bijnor, where his parents lived. They stayed there for six days before reaching out to the Delhi Police, who notified the authorities in Uttarakhand, leading to their return to Dehradun.
Monu faced charges under IPC sections 363 (kidnapping), 366A (procuration of a minor), and 376 (rape), as well as sections under the Pocso Act. Although the girl did not support the prosecution, the additional district and sessions court (Pocso Act) presided over by Judge Archana Sagar acquitted him of the rape charge but convicted him of kidnapping.
Monu’s lawyer, Sailendra Nath, stated, “He was only 18 when they mutually decided to be together. Even the girl did not support the prosecution’s case. We plan to challenge the verdict in the high court.”
During the trial, the girl testified that after her NEET exam, she and her father checked into a hotel. The next morning, she informed her father that she needed to use the restroom, after which she boarded a bus to Bijnor with Monu. They spent one day there before continuing to Delhi.
She also told the Pocso court that during their six days together, Monu did not engage in any physical intimacy with her. A doctor who examined the girl reported no conclusive signs of rape. Along with the three-year prison sentence, the court imposed a fine of ₹10,000 on Monu and ordered the state government to pay the girl ₹1 lakh in compensation.
