Ex-SI, two others get 10 yrs in jail for gangrape

Lucknow: After a 28-year-long legal battle, a court in Hardoi sentenced a former sub-inspector and two others to 10 years in jail for the gang rape of a minor. A fourth accused was awarded nine months in jail for wrongful confinement while two others died during trial.Additional district judge Sunil Kumar Singh pronounced the verdict on Tuesday against former SI Kulpati Ram, brothers Rajaram and Ramchandra, and Baburam. The case dates back to 1996, when the 13-year-old girl from a village went missing on Aug 24. Her father filed a police complaint on Aug 28, alleging his daughter was abducted and raped by the accused. When the family searched Rajaram's residence, they found the girl held captive there, and rescued her.The case took a turn when the survivor alleged that SI Kulpati Ram, who was handling the investigation, also sexually assaulted her on the pretext of recording her statement.A relative of the survivor's family said the police got the girl's statement recorded before a magistrate only on Oct 19. "The police's laxity can be gauged from the fact that the medical examination was done on July 6, 1997, and that too, only after the intervention of the then DIG," he added.During the trial proceedings, the survivor testified in court against Rajaram, Ramchandra and one Ram Kumar, on April 10, 2002. She further said that SI Kulpati Ram later took her to the police station, where he kept her for nine days and sexually assaulted her. After that, the girl said she was held captive at the house of one Awadhesh Singh, who also raped her.Ram Kumar and Awadhesh Singh died during the trial.Hardoi SP Neeraj Kumar said the case had been pending for long, and they requested for a fast-track trial to secure the conviction.Lucknow: After a 28-year-long legal battle, a court in Hardoi sentenced a former sub-inspector and two others to 10 years in jail for the gang rape of a minor. A fourth accused was awarded nine months in jail for wrongful confinement while two others died during trial.Additional district judge Sunil Kumar Singh pronounced the verdict on Tuesday against former SI Kulpati Ram, brothers Rajaram and Ramchandra, and Baburam. The case dates back to 1996, when the 13-year-old girl from a village went missing on Aug 24. Her father filed a police complaint on Aug 28, alleging his daughter was abducted and raped by the accused. When the family searched Rajaram's residence, they found the girl held captive there, and rescued her.The case took a turn when the survivor alleged that SI Kulpati Ram, who was handling the investigation, also sexually assaulted her on the pretext of recording her statement.A relative of the survivor's family said the police got the girl's statement recorded before a magistrate only on Oct 19. "The police's laxity can be gauged from the fact that the medical examination was done on July 6, 1997, and that too, only after the intervention of the then DIG," he added.During the trial proceedings, the survivor testified in court against Rajaram, Ramchandra and one Ram Kumar, on April 10, 2002. She further said that SI Kulpati Ram later took her to the police station, where he kept her for nine days and sexually assaulted her. After that, the girl said she was held captive at the house of one Awadhesh Singh, who also raped her.Ram Kumar and Awadhesh Singh died during the trial.Hardoi SP Neeraj Kumar said the case had been pending for long, and they requested for a fast-track trial to secure the conviction.