INDIA: Wife gang-raped by husband’s friends in Kerala; police stonewall victim

Dear Friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information from Nervazhi, a human rights organisation based in Thrissur District of the Indian state of Kerala concerning the case of Mary (name changed) who was gang-raped by her husband’s friends. Mary struggled to lodge a complaint against the perpetrators with the local police. The police refused to accept Mary’s complaint and insulted her at the police station, labelling her as a woman with loose morals. The policemen ordered Mary to not visit the police station again with such complaints of sexual abuse as, according to the policemen, such complaints lodged by persons with poor morals cannot be investigated. The case sheds light on the fact that lodging a complaint with the Indian police is always a difficult task. This case adds one more to the list of innumerable cases of rape in India where the police have been blamed for not recording the victim’s complaints and conducting investigations. 

CASE NARRATIVE:

Mary is a 24-year-old woman and a beautician by profession. On 23 November 2007, Mary married Mr. Benson Babu. After marriage, Mary and her husband rented a house and started living together. Soon after marriage, Benson started bringing his friends to the house for drinks. A regular visitor among Benson’s friends was a certain Mr. Arun. 
On 7 January 2008 around 7 p.m., Benson gave Mary some fruit juice to drink. Soon after drinking the fruit juice, Mary complained she was feeling unwell; she felt dizzy. When Mary stepped out of the house to wash her face, she saw Arun waiting outside the house. When Mary asked Arun why he was waiting outside, he replied that he had come along with her husband Benson. Mary went inside the house. Within minutes, Benson stepped out of the house. Arun then entered the house and raped Mary. Mary was physically weak and she was unable to prevent Arun from raping her. Soon thereafter Mary lost her consciousness. 

The next morning when Mary regained consciousness, Benson was home. Mary realized that it was Benson who had arranged for Arun to rape her. Mary argued with Benson and tried to commit suicide. One of their common friends, Mr. Anil, and his wife Priya, along with Benson, prevented Mary from taking her own life. The same evening, Benson apologized to Mary about the rape, saying that it had happened because Benson was under the influence of alcohol and was therefore unable to prevent his friend Arun from raping her. Benson promised Mary that such a thing would never happen again and assured Mary that he will be a good husband. 

On 12 January 2008, Mary felt sick. She began taking medical treatment. On 15 January 2008, Mary’s mother Thankamma visited Mary. On the same day, Mary decided to stay at her mother’s house and left along with her mother. 

On 24 January 2008, at 3 p.m., Benson’s friends, Mr. Linto and Mr. Joby were near Mary and Benson’s house when Mary had returned to her house from her mother’s place. Linto and Joby started drinking alcohol, and by 4 p.m., both of them were drunk. Fearing the earlier experience, Mary locked herself inside the house. However, Linto and Joby broke into the house. And, they too raped Mary. Mary was physically injured as a result of this sexual assault. She suffered deep shock and could not even speak or rise up after the rape. 

Later that evening, Benson returned home and Mary argued with Benson, accusing her husband of behaving like a pig. Benson threatened Mary and told her that she had only seen a relatively good side of Benson so far and if she were to complain about the incidents, he will show his terrible side and finish her off. Furthermore, Benson destroyed the furniture inside the house out of rage. Meanwhile, Linto and Joby returned to Mary’s house. Benson then insisted that Mary should consent to having physical relations with Linto and Joby. Mary refused. Benson then slapped Mary several times and banged her head on the wall several times and stormed out of the house. Mary was deeply traumatized and shocked and could not speak for a few hours. 

Around 7 p.m., the same day, Mary informed her mother about what had happened. Mary’s mother called Benson on the phone and enquired about his whereabouts. Benson refused to answer and since then he has never returned.

Mary could not speak to anyone about her predicament for a few days. Benson also did not return or had not contacted Mary since 25 January 2008. On 28 January 2008, Mary filed a missing person complaint at Peechi Police Station. Mary then spoke to her mother and Mary’s mother encouraged Mary to complain to the police about what she had gone through.

On 5 February 2008, Mary tried to file a written complaint at the Peechi Police Station. To her surprise, Peechi Police Station Assistant Sub Inspector Joe Paul tore off the complaint and ordered Police Constable Surendran to take Mary out of the Station building. Mary, who was already suffering from trauma, did not know what to do and she, therefore, left the Police Station.

Soon thereafter, Mary started receiving telephone calls from Constable Surendran, who began started harassing Mary over the telephone. He asked Mary to visit Surendran at hotels so Surendran could have a sexual relationship with her. 

In the meanwhile, on 17th February 2008, Mary realized that she was pregnant. Unable to go through with bringing a child into this world under these circumstances, Mary aborted the pregnancy. 

Later, Sub Inspector Ravi from Peechi Police Station contacted Mary and informed her that the Peechi Police Station does not have the jurisdiction to accept a complaint about rape from Mary. He said that Mary should be filing a complaint of rape at Anthikkad Police Station. Accordingly, Mary, along with her mother, went to Anthikkad Police Station to file a complaint. Unfortunately, Anthikkad Police Station Police Constable Balan, who they met there, refused to accept the complaint and ordered Mary and her mother out of the Police Station.

Unable to find help and protection from the police, Mary filed a private complaint with the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Thrissur. The Court accepted the complaint and directed the Anthikkad police to register a case against Mary’s husband and his friends as alleged in Mary’s complaint on the 26 July 2008 under Sections 493, 496, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code. 

The police, despite the direction from the court, have neither investigated the case nor arrested have they arrested any of the accused. The police claim that the accused in the case are absconding, but Mary has informed the police repeatedly that Benson is now in Goa and that she has his current address. Mary has also informed the police that Arun was working abroad in the Middle East and that he has since returned to India. Mary has also provided Arun’s address to the police as well as Joby’s address in Bangalore to the police. Mary does not know the whereabouts of Linto. 

Mary suspects the influence of Linto’s elder brother, who is a police officer, is influencing the police not to investigate the case. Mary has also filed a complaint at the office of the Thrissur City Police Commissioner. But the compliant has not yet been acted upon. The police claim that the alleged perpetrators’ addresses cannot be found. The Asian Human Rights Commission is providing the available addresses in the state of Kerala in India so that the alleged perpetrators are immediately brought to the book. The alleged rapists are:

1. Mr Benson Babu, son of Mr. Babu, resident of Vandanam Thadathil House, City Garden, Pattikkad, Thrissur – 680652
2. Mr. Joby, resident of City Garden, Pattikkad, Thrissur – 680652
3. Mr. Linto, son of Mr. Thimmathy, resident of Postman, City Garden, Pattikkad, Thrissur

From February 2008 to date, the relatives of the accused in this case have been threatening Mary with horrifying consequences if she does not give up the case. Mary’s own brothers have asked her not to go public with the complaints. It is common for the family members of a rape victim to view the act of rape in their family as a stigma that will bring embarrassment and social ostracism. 

Mary is baffled and does not know what will happen in her case. She is deeply traumatized and has received no help with respect to her complaint other than that offered by Nervazhi. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

India is infamous for its high rate of crime against women. This is despite 318 Fast Track Courts having been set up in different states of India to address cases relating to crime against women. 
Of course, there are in existence the National, State and District Legal Service Authorities that have Paralegal Volunteers supposed to rescue the underprivileged in distress and provide them with free legal aid services. However, victims like Mary do not receive any such services. The infrastructure and process of administration justice in India fails to counter an estimated 31,000 rape cases pending in Indian high courts alone, some of which were filed ages ago. In practical terms, the Constitution, laws, and policies mean nothing to most people in India, who do not have significant reserves of money, power, or connections. Mary endured considerable physical, mental, and emotional pain due to the actions of her husband and his friends, but no person in authority whom she has approached felt the need to help her get the justice and dignity she deserves. Her case is pending in court for the last six years and the hostility she feels while pursuing her complaint is torturing Mary inside out. She has no one to turn to; her family members want to distance themselves from what they perceive as a stigma. Mary is being questioned about her morality every day but there is no one in the society or in all the institutions she has approached who can help her challenge the actions of her husband and his friends. 

SUGGESTED ACTION: 

Please write to the authorities listed below, asking them to track down the perpetrators and bring them to book so that justice is ensured to Mary. 

Furthermore, the Assistant Sub Inspector Joe Paul of Peechi Police Station and Constable Balan of Anthikkad Police Station should be relieved of their duties immediately, for being insensitive to a victim in grief and for not following the protocols in order to address the needs of a rape victim. Constable Surendran of Peechi Police Station should not only be stripped off his duties, but should also be charged with sexual harassment, and further investigation should be taken up by the authority in this regard. It is of prime importance that Mary is given proper counselling to help her overcome her trauma, under the supervision and guidance of the Kerala Women’s Commission.

The AHRC is also writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women calling for their intervention into this matter.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER