This story is from August 9, 2019

Warangal: Man gets death for 9-month-old’s rape, murder; verdict in 49 days

A man who raped and murdered a nine-month-old baby in Hanamkonda on June 19 this year was sentenced to death on Thursday by the Warangal first additional district court in one of the fastest verdicts delivered in recent times in the state. The court fast-tracked the case to pronounce its judgment in 49 days.
Warangal: Man gets death for 9-month-old’s rape, murder; verdict in 49 days
Polepka Praveen
WARANGAL: A man who raped and murdered a nine-month-old baby in Hanamkonda on June 19 this year was sentenced to death on Thursday by the Warangal first additional district court in one of the fastest verdicts delivered in recent times in the state. The court fast-tracked the case to pronounce its judgment in 49 days.
The accused, Polepka Praveen (26), had abducted the baby on June 19 from the terrace of the house in Kumarapalli where the family was sleeping.
The man was arrested the same night after a massive hunt was launched by the family, locals and cops, but the rescued baby could not be saved.
Investigations revealed that Praveen, who hails from Vasanthapur village in rural Warangal, was a habitual sexual offender and a paedophile. But police said that they had never received any complaint against him in the past.
He was booked under POCSO and various sections of IPC and the chargesheet was filed in 21 days with all scientific reports in place. “We hoped that he would get the strictest punishment as our witnesses were very strong and we had evidence to back it,” Subedari inspector Sadaiah said.
First additional district court judge K Jayakumar examined over 40 witnesses in the case, apart from going through all the scientific reports before delivering his judgment.
The incident had led to massive protests by student unions, temple priests and several organisations, seeking strict punishment for Praveen.
The child’s parents, K Jagan and Rachana, said the swift judgment would hopefully prevent such crimes in future. “Since last two months my wife has not eaten properly or slept at night,” said Jagan, a private employee.
Warangal West MLA Dasyam Vinaya Bhaskar thanked the bar association for deciding not to argue the case for the accused who was later represented by a court-appointed lawyer.
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