A special POCSO court in Mysuru has sentenced 31-year-old Karthik to death for the rape and murder of a 10-year-old girl who had come to the city with her parents to sell balloons during the previous year’s Dasara festivities. The court also imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh and directed the District Legal Services Authority to provide ₹13.50 lakh in compensation to the girl’s family.
The sentence was pronounced after the court found Karthik guilty earlier in the week. Judge Anand P. Hogadoe of the special POCSO court issued the compensation direction along with the punishment, according to a report by Prajavani.
The girl’s parents, who had travelled from north Karnataka for seasonal work, were living in a temporary hut near the Nagaswamy temple area in the brick-kiln locality. The family had been preparing to return home after the Dasara festival when the girl’s body was found in a drain beside the hut in the early hours of October 9, 2025.
A case was registered at the Nazarbad police station following a complaint by the girl’s mother. Police later traced Karthik, a resident of Siddalingapura, after observing his movements through closed-circuit television footage and arrested him.
The investigation included a post-mortem examination conducted at the forensic medicine department of Mysuru Medical College and Research Institute, as well as DNA testing at the State Forensic Science Laboratory in Bengaluru. The prosecution also relied on digital evidence. The police subsequently filed a chargesheet before the court.
According to the report, Karthik attempted to escape while being taken back after a scene-mahazar procedure. Police shot him in the right leg near Metagalli and detained him. The case was argued for the state by public prosecutor K.B. Jayanthi, while principal legal services defence counsel Machangada Naveen represented the accused.
The case has also drawn attention to the safety risks faced by families who travel to cities for temporary festival and informal work and live in makeshift settlements near public activity zones. In this instance, the court’s compensation order is intended for the family through the District Legal Services Authority. The sentencing followed the court’s earlier finding of guilt and the submission of forensic, DNA and digital evidence during the trial.
