INDIA: Police refuses to investigate a case of rape

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the QIC-AC Uttar Pradesh, a human rights association based in Uttar Pradesh state, India that police refused to register a case regarding the rape of a minor. The QIC-AC reports that 13-year-old Puja (name changed) was raped by her neighbour on 26 February, but that the police refused to register a complaint or to investigate it until 2 March, when a local human rights group intervened. Even after registering the case, officers have carried out no investigation and even threatened the girl’s family to try and make them withdraw the complaint.

CASE DETAILS:

Puja is a 13 year old resident of Ghuma, a village within the jurisdiction of Vihangamganj Police Station in Sonbhadra district. While she was alone at home, her neighbour, Dileep Kumar (son of Vihangam Pal) came to Puja’s house and raped her. The incident happened at about 3pm on 26 February and Puja’s father reported the rape at Vihangamganj Police Station the next day. The police did not register the complaint or investigate it.

A local human rights group, Sonbhadra Vikas Samiti wrote to the Station House Officer at the police station requesting that they register and investigate the case, which prompted him to register a First Information Report (FIR) on 2 March as a crime, number 64/09. They also arrested the accused, but did not apprehend him for long. The police then sent the FIR to the local court, but the girl was not subjected to medical examination. Sonbhadra Vikas Samiti is part of the QIC-AC coilation.

In the registered case Dileep has not been accused of rape, but of violating Section 354 (assault or criminal force against a woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC). It is a crime punishable with just two years in prison or a fine.

The police officers then inexplicably started pressuring Puja’s father to settle the matter out of court and withdraw the complaint.

The NGO QIC-AC UP informs us that the Vihangamganj police are notorious for accepting bribes from the accused and forcing complainants to withdraw complaints. Sexual intercourse with a minor amounts to rape under the IPC in any situation; there is no legal way that this case should have not been registered as such. QIC-AC UP also claims that Dileep has been accused of raping other minors in the past, and that his family has friendly ties with officers at the station.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

To ensure the prosecution of rapists and encourage rape complaints it is important for medical professionals to get involved at the preliminary stages of every case. As a result, police who have been bribed often delay the registering of the case and deny access to an examination, reducing the chances that medical evidence can be used.

In India women are still considered second class citizens, yet their conduct remains a denominator of family honour. Due to this the rape of a woman or a girl is often kept secret, which is another reason behind the low rate of prosecution or complaints for rape. Financial settlements or others, such as marriage, are often arranged instead of legal redress, causing untold psychological harm to the victim and widespread social damage. Rapists tend to reoffend, and in these cases it is the victim’s family who tend to feel disempowered.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send letters to the authorities named below expressing your concern in this case. The AHRC is also sending a letter to the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, calling for an intervention in this case.

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