India, June 29 -- A special court in Pune on Monday sentenced a 65-year-old man to death for the kidnapping, brutal rape and murder of a three-year-old girl in Nasrapur village, an incident that triggered public outrage and protests in Maharashtra.

Terming the case as "rarest of the rare", Additional Judge (special judge) S R Salunkhe sentenced Bhimrao Kamble, who was present in the witness box.

As the judge pronounced the capital punishment, the family of the victim broke down in court. Reading out the operative part of the decision, Judge Salunkhe said that the evidence clearly established aggravating circumstances in favour of the prosecution.

"The offences relate to the commission of serious crimes like murder and rape by an accuse...