With elections in Amethi over, a police team led by Circle Officer Alambagh, who is overseeing the investigation of alleged gang rape case, raided Samajwadi Party minister Gaytri Prajapti’s official residence on Tuesday evening to arrest him. The cops, however, were highly disappointed when they did not find the accused minister at the residence.
A police team then conducted inspection of minister’s residence to collect evidences related to the charges leveled on the Gayatri.
Circle Officer, Alambagh Amita Singh said the police team had gone to inspect the crime scene and to arrest the minister for the alleged gang rape case. She said police teams are hunting the minister and hoped the teams will nab him soon. Earlier, SSP lucknow had said the enough evidence were fond against Gayatri after the victim of the gang rape case got her statement recorded. She had said the police had found that Gayatri and the victim had talked on cell phone.
Around 5.15 PM, police teams comprising Circle officer, Hazratganj Awnish Mishra, Circle Officer Alambagh (IO of the case) and police teams from Alambagh, Hazratganj and Gautam Palli along with sleuths of Crime Branch reached the Gayatri’s official residence in Gautampali locality. Presence of heavy police force in the area was though not surprising for many, the commuters and vendors flocked to the scene. Police teams entered the house and then searched the house.
Sources said a police team earlier had conducted a raid in Amethi on Monday night but failed to get any success. “The crime branch teams had taken some number on the surveillance to locate Gayatri who is hiding presently,” the sources said.
On February 18, a case of gang rape and rape attempt was registered against SP minister Gayatri Prasad Prajapati and his six aides at Guatampalli police station in lucknow on Saturday. The police also slapped ¾ POCSO act on Gaytryi and other accused for attempting rape on the complainant’s minor daughter besides cases for criminal intimidation and use of foul language was also registered.
The complainant who hails from Chitrakoot had alleged that she visited Gayatri’s official residence in Gautampalli in connection with a work related to mining some time back when Gayatri’s close aide Ashok Tiwari gave her drinks laced with sedatives after which Gayatri and his aides raped her and filmed the incident. “They kept blackmailing me by threatening to public the video clip. I was hapless and followed their dktat. Gayatri also invited me in his birth day party and the group raped me. I along with my minor daughter had visited minister’s residence on the day. The minister and his men also tried to force themselves on my daughter also,” she had alleged in the complaint.
She further had alleged that she petitioned my case at DGP office even but my plea remained unheard.
The woman had petitioned the case in the apex court which had instructed the UP government to register a case and submit the report within eight days. Snubbed the apex court, the DGP instructed the lucknow police to register a case in this connection then.
Giving details, a police spokesman informed that a case (case crime number 29/2017) was registered against Gayatri Prasad Prajapati and his aides identified as Ashok Tiwari, Pintu Singh, Vikas Verma, Chandrapal, Rupesh and Ashish Shukla. He said the above named persons had been accused of rape attempt with victim’s 17-year-old daughter. The officer said the police also slapped section ¾ of POCSO act also.
On February 25, the victim had got her statement recorded under section 164 of CrPC while leveling charges of rape against the minister. She, however, had refused to go for medical test and to visit crime scene along with a police saying she was very scared of her life.