A special Pocso court in Dehradun has sentenced a former Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for repeatedly sexually abusing his daughter. The survivor reported that the abuse began when she was around six years old. Special Judge Archana Sagar also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on the convict.

The case came to light in November 2023 when the victim, then 17 years old, confided in her mother about the years of abuse. The mother immediately filed a complaint at a police station in Dehradun. Police arrested the accused on November 20, 2023, and he has remained in jail since then.

During the trial, the victim testified that her father's abuse began when she was in the fourth grade, when he molested her and told her to keep it a secret while giving her chocolates. She stated that her father would often beat her mother, which frightened her. The court was informed that the assaults occurred in various locations, including Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, and Uttarakhand, due to the man's postings with the Air Force. The victim also told the court that the accused told her that such abuse was normal and that this was how fathers showed love to their daughters. She further testified that when she was in the 12th grade, her mother was hospitalized after a road accident, and her father raped her again during that time.

The convict was found guilty under IPC sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural offences) and 506 (criminal intimidation), and sections 5 and 6 of the Pocso Act. He had earlier been suspended from IAF service. The victim's family includes a younger brother with special needs and another sibling with a serious illness.