A Fast Track court here has acquitted two brothers, accused of raping an 18-year-old girl from Chandigarh in September 2010.
According to the prosecution, a complaint was received alleging therein that on the intervening night of 16 and 17 September 2010, the girl, who after having Darshan of Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, was sitting at the Bus Stand Jammu waiting for a bus to Chandigarh.
At the same time, two youths— Mukat Singh alias Sunny and his brother Sangeet Singh alias Songi sons of Gian Singh of R. S. Pura Jammu—came toward her and one of them introduced himself as Sub-Inspector of Jammu police, though he was not in uniform, according to the complaint.
The duo then asked the girl, who had come to the shrine alone after a tiff with her family, that it was not “good for her” to stay at the bus stand and instead asked her to stay in a Gurudwara nearby and that she may go to Chandigarh on next day. With one of them having introduced himself as police sub inspector, the youths made her to sit in a vehicle and took her to a house where they allegedly raped her turn by turn, the complaint alleged.
The complaint to the police was made by the girl’s father after 12 days and reason for delay and the complainant said that her daughter was very tense and under tremendous fear and revealed the facts only after great persuasion.
Subsequently, the police filed an FIR and after the investigation, the offences under section 366, 376, 382, 342, 170, 34 RPC were proved against the accused persons and chargesheet was filed which culminated into trial.
After hearing both the prosecution and the counsel for the accused, the presiding officer of the Fast Track Court Jammu (cases against women), Khalil Choudhary, acquitted the brothers, finding the evidence against them not “definite, positive, consistent and coherent.”
“From the evidence ….., it cannot be established that victim of the offence was kidnapped/abducted or confined by the accused. The circumstances in this regard are highly doubtful and improbable,” the court said as per the order, a copy of which lies with GNS.
As regards subjecting the girl to rape, the court said, “It has come in record that the prosecutrix has been produced before Gynaecologist and it has been established that the medical examination of the prosecutrix was conducted on 26.09.2010 i.e on the date of registration of FIR and as per the statement of this witness (Gynaecologist) neither there was any evidence of recent sexual intercourse nor there was any sign of struggle on the part of the prosecutrix.”
“Even the medical evidence belies the theory of rape as is sought to be alleged by the prosecutrix,” the court said and ultimately acquitted the accused brothers.
“therefore, on cumulative consideration of the matter in its totality having regard to the statements of witnesses would suggest that there is no concrete evidence on record connecting the accused with the commission of offence,” the court added. (GNS)