The Supreme Court has upheld the Rajasthan High Court’s verdict of a seven-year jail sentence to Bitti Hottra Mohanty, son of Odisha’s former DGP Bidya Bhushan Mohanty, for raping a German tourist in Alwar in Rajasthan in 2006.

A two-judge bench of the top court, led by Justice JK Maheshwari and also comprising Justice Sanjay Karol, did not find any merit in the Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by Bitti, who had moved the SC challenging his seven-year jail sentence ordered by the Rajasthan HC in the case.

While his SLP was pending before the SC, Bitti was granted bail on March 31, 2017. The apex court directed him to surrender before the jail authorities within two months, before June 5.

According to the prosecution, Bitti was involved in the rape of a German national (tourist) in Alwar, Rajasthan. Bitti was primarily convicted by the Fast Track Trial Court Alwar within 15 days of his arrest on April 12, 2006 and also by the Rajasthan HC upholding his conviction on October 4 in the same year.

The Rajasthan government, represented by Shiv Mangal Sharma, the Additional Advocate General (AAG) had in his argument said that Bitti’s conviction should be upheld by the SC, keeping in view his brutal role in raping a German national. “It is a serious crime against a foreigner. The Rajasthan government is very committed in combating crimes against women and protecting the rights and safety of foreign nationals in India,” Sharma argued.