Girl was kidnapped to prevent her from testifying in court

The family of the girl and one of the accused in the gang rape case Hari Shankar had an old dispute and some of the cases had reached court.

KANPUR: The 13-year-old girl, who was allegedly raped in Bhopal over three days by four men and then sexually assaulted again by the SHO of the Pali police station in Lalitpur, was kidnapped on April 22 allegedly in order to prevent her from testifying in court in an old case.

Her testimony was scheduled on April 25, initial investigations have revealed.

The family of the girl and one of the accused in the gang rape case Hari Shankar had an old dispute and some of the cases had reached court.

The girl’s father was a complainant in one such case. She was to appear before the court on April 25 for her testimony. She was the eyewitness in the case, said two police officers.

It has emerged that before she could testify, the other party used Chandan, another accused in the gang rape case, to lure her as he was on good terms with the girl and her family. She was taken to Bhopal where she was kept in a house near the railway station where she was allegedly gang raped over three days.

“The accused will be taken on remand for questioning in light of these details emerging,” said a senior police officer. All the accused would be presented before the court where their custody would be sought.

The accused will be taken on remand for questioning in light of these details emerging...All the accused would be presented before the court where their custody would be sought A SENIOR POLICE OFFICIAL,

ACCUSED BROUGHT THE GIRL TO POLICE STN

The girl was taken away allegedly by the accused on April 22 and, as per the FIR, was found on April 26.

During this four-day period, the parents frantically searched for their missing daughter. Eventually, the four accused brought the girl to the Pali police station on April 26 with her aunt and pressured the SHO to give her custody to the aunt in place of her parents, said two police officers privy to the details. The Pali police did not send her for medical examination, which was necessary, nor did it inform her parents, who had filed a missing complaint and approached senior officers, said the officials.

Instead, SHO Tilak Dhari Saroj gave custody to the aunt, who was allegedly in league with the accused. The SHO called the victim the next day on the pretext of recording her statement. He allegedly raped her in his chambers before sending her away late on April 27 night, the investigations have revealed.

The girl’s parents were alarmed when they saw the key accused and others in the village while their girl was still missing. They then approached senior officers again with their complaint.