Shabir Khan
The gangrape of a minor girl, 15, from Kashmir’s Baramulla district has created shockwaves across the region, with many seeking stringent punishment against the culprits.
A minor girl (name withheld), a resident of the N Mohalla from the Pattan area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district was out with her friends on Eid day like most of the children in Kashmir.
“We do not have any major playgrounds or amusement parks here, so on the first three days of Eid, most of the children roam and gather around the railway station. She was among these children. But unlike all the others, the 15-year-old did not return home,” said locals.
As the festivities came to a close on 19th June, the third day of Eid ul Adha, a sense of fear and apprehension gripped the family when their daughter did not return home. They immediately went to all possible places to search for her whereabouts and searched throughout the night, but to no avail. “Someone informed the family that the minor girl had been abducted from the railway station,” said a local from N Mohalla.
The father of the girl accompanied by some locals rushed to the Police station at the first light of the dawn and informed the Police about his missing daughter.
As per the initial Police FIR, of which a copy is available with The Kashmiriyat, filed on 20 June 2024, the complainant’s daughter, who is a minor, disappeared at around 06:00 PM on 19th June, 2024 from the railway station.
“The family spent the entire night searching for her and consulted various people.” The complainant, as per the FIR, explained that unknown person/ persons had abducted the complainant’s daughter.
“Her disappearance and other related circumstances confirm that she has been abducted after which Police filed an FIR under the section 363 of the Indian Penal Code vide the number 219/ 2024 after which the investigation was handed over to a police officer of the SI rank,” the FIR reads.
Station House Officer Pattan, Khalid Fayaz confirmed to The Kashmiriyat that the Police received a report of a missing girl from Pattan after which the Police started a manhunt for the minor. One day after, the girl was found and during the questioning the girl revealed that she had been raped by three persons.
After the statement of the girl was recorded, three persons accused of the gang-rape were immediately arrested and further investigation has been launched, the official said.
The accused, as per locals, took the minor girl to a rented accommodation of one of the three accused in Srinagar and raped her. Police have also seized the vehicle that was used for the commission of the crime.
Initially the case was registered under the single charge of 363 (kidnapping), however, after the minor survivor’s statement, the charges of gang-rape 376 A, D, and POCSO Act have been added to the list of the charges against the three accused.
The medical reports have confirmed that the minor girl was raped after which the girl has given her statement to the local magistrate, sources told The Kashmiriyat.
The crime graph in Kashmir is on rise. According to a report, over 2340 cases of crimes against women were registered in Jammu Kashmir last year. Many incidents go unreported, including cases of domestic violence.
In recent years, there has been a concerning rise in such incidents, including murders, severe beatings, and acid attacks against women.
The name of the girl and her specific place of residence have been withheld by The Kashmiriyat to respect the sensitivities surrounding the issue.