Mahima
A POCSO court in Bulandshahr has awarded death sentence to three men for gang- rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl.
Additional Sessions Judge Rajesh Parashar noted,
“Because of this incident, parents of minors are afraid of sending their children for studies and a sense of fear has been instilled in them. This crime scared people and parents becameapprehensive of sending their girls to school”.
He further observed,
“The government is trying to promote ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’, and if strict punishment is not awarded to those who carry out such heinous crimes, the daughter will not be able to study nor will she be saved. Such schemes… will have no impact and serious questions will be raised on the functioning of the justice system if the courts do not listen and respond to the cry of the society”.
Around three years ago, the culprits, Zulfikar Abbasi, Dilshad Abbasi and Malani alias Israel abducted the girl while she was returning from her tuition. She was then gang-raped and killed by her dupatta in a moving car. Her dead body was then thrown in a canal under Dadri police station area of Gautam Budh Nagar district. The girl’s family filed a complaint with the Kotwali Dehat police station when they recovered her bicycle and school bag from the road while searching for her.
During investigation, CCTV footage was collected from a nearby spot which helped in identifying the car in which she was abducted. There was ‘Abbasi boys’ written on it. The accused were traced with the help of toll plaza footage and shopkeepers.
During interrogation, the culprits from Sikandrabad, gave a bizarre motive for their heinous crime and stated that they visited Bulandshahr on the day of the incident because the weather was nice and they wanted to ‘have fun’. The parents of the victim have welcomed the POCSO court’s decision and declared it a victory of justice.
The father of the victim remarked,
“we are indebted to Muniraj, the then SSP of Bulandshahr who really listened to us. We are very satisfied with the way the case proceeded. And in three years there was a judgment. We would also like to thank the media for constantly supporting us along with the courts for this verdict. It is an important day for us. Girls in our country can now move freely on roads”.
The victim’s mother maintained that if the convicts appeal, they would fight the case.