French diplomat did not rape his daughter, rules Bengaluru court

Pascal Mazurier, the French diplomat who was accused by his Indian wife Suja Mazurier of raping their threeyear-old daughter in 2012, was acquitted by a local court here on Wednesday. Although the order of the court is not yet available, lawyers connected with the case said the judge did not find enough evidence to establish rape.

Emerging from the court, Pascal — who was the deputy head of the chancery in the consulate of France here before his arrest —said he wanted to put the incident behind him and meet his children. He also accused his estranged wife of being a “criminal”. Suja, on the other hand, accused the Bengaluru police of colluding with Pascal and the French mission in suppressing evidence, something she has maintained all along the five-year trial. She said the judgment will be challenged in the high court.

When the story first broke on June 14, 2012, it appeared to be an open-and-shut case as Suja’s complaint was accompanied by a medical report from the Collaborative Child Response Unit (CCRU) of the baptist hospital here. The CCRU report said the child bore tell-tale marks of sexual abuse and there were traces of semen on her clothes.

Subsequent tests conducted by the Bowring (government) Hospital on June 15 confirmed that the child had been abused but doctors there had said it would be difficult to connect the crime to Pascal using biological evidence as much time had lapsed. Pascal was let off by the police after he claimed he had diplomatic immunity. He was arrested again five days later after it was established that he could not claim immunity and spent four months in jail before being granted bail by Karnataka HC. The case took several twists and turns, with the French expat community accusing Suja of fabricating evidence.