India, Nov. 16 -- A special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Court on Friday sentenced a 55-year-old man to 10 years rigorous imprisonment for repeatedly sexually assaulting his relative, who was 15 at the time, ruling that the prosecution had proved the allegations "beyond a reasonable doubt".

While convicting the accused, special Judge P N Rao reiterated the established legal principle that the credible testimony of a survivor of sexual assault does not require independent corroboration

According to the judgment, which was made available on Saturday, the most serious assault on the survivor took place on February 26, 2018, when the child's mother was undergoing dialysis at a hospital and her father was away in Gujar...