Was never raped, Rajpura SOS village minor inmate tells court

SAYS HER MATERNAL AUNT INSTIGATED HER AND FOUR OTHER INMATES TO MAKE WILD ALLEGATIONS AGAINST THE SHELTER HOME

PATIALA : A day after police registered rape case on the complaint of a 16-year-old inmate of SOS Children’s Village, Rajpura, she retracted her statement before a magistrate on Friday.

Police had booked a 22-yearold former inmate of the village under Section 376 (rape) of the IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on the basis of a complaint submitted by the girl through her maternal aunt two months ago.

After registration of the case, the victim was produced before a magistrate for recording her statement under Section 164 of the CrPC.

In her deposition, the victim claimed that her Rajpura-based maternal aunt pressured her to file a complaint against the youth.

“No such incident happened and the complaint was frivolous. My maternal aunt had some personal dispute with the youth,” she claimed in her written statement.

She also stated that her aunt instigated her to give defamatory statements against the shelter home.

“No ill-treatment was meted out to me during my stay at the shelter home,” she said.

She even claimed that the incident related to five inmates escaping from the shelter home on Wednesday was also plotted by her aunt, who “instigated the children to give controversial statements”.

Meanwhile, she also refused to undergo medical examination and submitted the same in writing.

Deputy superintendent of police KK Panthay said the police will now carry investigation on the basis of victim’s statement.

Senior superintendent of police Mandeep Singh Sidhu said the police will conduct an inquiry into the matter from all angles.

“Stringent action will be taken against all those who instigated the victim to lodge a false rape complaint,” the SSP said.

After running away from the shelter home, the five minor inmates alleged ill-treatment and sexual exploitation by senior inmates. Following this, three of the inmates were shifted to another shelter home, while the custody of two others was handed over to their relatives.

SOS VILLAGE ISSUES STATEMENT

The SOS Children’s Village of India said the maternal aunt of two biological siblings from the village has a history of creating trouble for SOS Rajpura.

“In February 2018, the aunt had visited the SOS children’s village without approval. She and her son turned violent when a worker questioned them regarding their visit,” a statement by SOS said.