Investigations into the alleged rape and molestation of several minor girls in East Delhi by a 38-year-old paedophile — a tailor by profession — has led police to believe that apart from being a rapist, Sunil Rastogi exhibited a criminal mindset.
Right from committing theft at the SS Tailor 15 years ago where he used to work to selecting his victims, the school going children in New Ashok Nagar, the accused exhibited a deviant behaviour of targeting minor girls due to multiple factors. “These could include physical or mental abuse in his young adulthood, non fulfillment of sexual desires or getting away after molesting a girl,” said clinical psychologist Shubra Sanyal.
She told The Pioneer how paedophilia — a psychological disorder — has its root in the early childhood and financial and personal background.
“Right from selecting girls from a poor financial background to indulging in criminal activities and not getting punishment after molesting girls convinced Sunil to continue his criminal career for a long span of time,” said Sanyal.
A police officer, privy to the case, said Sunil selected his target carefully. “Full of inferiority complex about his physical appearance, Sunil went after the minor girls who studied in local Government schools as he knew the girls came from the poor back ground.” Sanyal said, “The idea behind targeting minor girls of Government schools was that they usually return home on their own.”
Sharing one such abortive incident in which a 10-year-old girl survived Sunil’s assaul, the girl’s father said, “My daughter was going to purchase a notebook after school when Sunil approached her.
“Pretending to be talking to me over his mobile phone, he enticed my daughter into believing that indeed he was talking to me. He then lured her to go with him to a nearby stationery shop. However, he changed the route and instead took her to a dark and dingry spot of an under construction building. When he tried to touch her, my daughter somehow managed to escape.”
Sitting at his house, a few kilomteres from the New Ashok Nagar police station where Sunil was held, in the lanes and back alleys, the man said, “One of our neighbours, a woman, saw my daughter, running and crying. The woman came to her rescue and then dropped her home.
It was only three days after that horrible incident that my daughter shared her ordeal with us.”