A POCSO court in Uttar Pradesh’s Banda on Friday sentenced a former government junior engineer and his wife to death for sexually abusing 33 boys over a decade and selling videos and photographs of the abuse on the dark web to buyers across 47 countries.
Additional District Judge PK Mishra held that the convicts, Ram Bhawan (50) and Durgawati (47), inflicted severe physical and psychological harm on the survivors, some of whom were as young as three. The court noted that several children required hospitalisation for serious injuries and that the long-term trauma justified classifying the case among the “rarest of rare” crimes.
“The sheer scale of victimisation across multiple districts, coupled with the extreme depravity involved, makes this an exceptionally heinous offence that leaves no scope for leniency,” the court observed, awarding the death penalty as the ultimate deterrent. The judge also directed the Uttar Pradesh government to pay ₹10 lakh in compensation to each of the 33 survivors.
Ram Bhawan, who was employed in the UP Jalkal (waterworks) department, and Durgawati allegedly lured children with promises of online video games, money and gifts. The abuse took place in Banda and Chitrakoot districts between 2010 and 2020. The case surfaced after Interpol alerted Indian authorities during an international probe into child sexual abuse material circulating on the dark web, prompting the CBI to step in.
The CBI registered an FIR on October 31, 2020, after tracing digital evidence to the couple, and filed a chargesheet on February 10, 2021, detailing the offences.
Special Public Prosecutor Kamal Singh Gautam said the prosecution presented extensive digital evidence, medical reports and survivor testimonies to establish the case. Medical experts from AIIMS Delhi examined 25 of the children who had suffered serious injuries.
“The survivors continue to battle deep psychological trauma caused by the accused,” Gautam said.
Judge Mishra convicted the couple under multiple provisions, including aggravated penetrative sexual assault, using children for pornographic purposes, abetment and criminal conspiracy.
