Mohammad Farooqui, the co-director of film Peepli live, was on Thursday handed down seven years of rigorous imprisonment for raping a 35-year-old American woman in 2015. The 44-year-old filmmaker was directed to pay a fine of Rs 50,000 to the victim, failing which he would have to undergo an additional imprisonment of three months.
Additional Sessions Judge Sanjiv Jain awarded the minimum jail term prescribed for the offence to Farooqui.
The court has also tasked the Delhi legal Service Authority to decide appropriate compensation for the woman.
On July 30, the court held him guilty of raping the American woman last year at his house, in a drunken state. During the arguments on sentence earlier, the Delhi Police had sought life imprisonment for the filmmaker, saying
the crime perpetrated on the foreigner has brought “disrepute” to India.
Farooqui’s counsel Nitya Ramakrishnan had said as the filmmaker suffered from bipolar disorder and has fully cooperated in the case he should be given a chance to reform.
Police had on June 19, 2015, lodged the FIR against Farooqui on the woman’s complaint after which he was arrested.