The Akhilesh Government faced all-round flak as crime against women surged in Uttar Pradesh with two separate cases reported from Etawah and Azamgarh on Friday, after the horrifying incident at Badaun in which two Dalit girls were raped, strangled and then left dangling from a mango tree.
The shocking nature of three cases has drawn sharp criticisms. Demanding imposition of President’s Rule as ‘jungle raj’ prevails in the State, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati said,“I am repeatedly saying that the law and order situation in the State has deteriorated and now the gang-rape in Badaun and increase of crimes on running trains and at other places has created a panic in the common masses.”
At the same time, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi on Friday sought report from the State Government on Badaun gang-rape.Officials here said the Uttar Pradesh Government has sent a report to the Home Ministry, saying that some arrests have been made and all the guilty in the case will be punished.
The sources said Home Ministry officials were in regular touch with the State authorities and have asked them to ensure that all those involved in the case were brought to book at the earliest.Maneka Gandhi, who blamed police for inaction, said that she would constitute a “rape crisis cell” to deal with these cases. “Police laxity is equally responsible for the incident due to which two girls lost their lives. Police is still not acting in the right direction. All policemen involved in the incident should be terminated,” said Maneka.
“If the girls’ family members want a CBI probe, I will recommend it. But I want the State government to submit a detailed enquiry report on the incident at the earliest,” she said.Of the seven wanted in the case, three (policeman Sarvesh Yadav and brothers Pappu and Awadhesh Yadav) have been arrested so far, Badaun SP Atul Kumar Saxena has said. Sarvesh and Pappu were arrested on Thursday. Four others Urvesh Yadav (brother of Pappu and Awadhesh), policeman Chhatrapal Yadav and two unidentified persons are at large.
In Etawah, mother of a rape victim was allegedly beaten up by family members of one of the accused when she refused to withdraw the FIR in the case. Reports said the 16-year-old girl was allegedly raped by two men Sunny and Umesh on May 12 when she was sleeping on the roof of her house in the Civil lines area in the home district of Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav.
One of the accused, Sunny was arrested on the complaint of the victim’s mother, police said. The victim’s family has alleged that it was after the arrest that the family members of the accused started pressurising victim’s mother to withdraw the complaint, they said. When the mother refused, she was allegedly assaulted by the family members of the accused on May 25, leaving her seriously injured, they said.
An FIR was registered against Sunny’s father Basant Yadav and other members of the family, Munesh and Rahul. Superintendent of Police Rishipal Singh said while Basant had been arrested, search was on to nab others. “We are providing full security to the victim and her family,” he said. The condition of the victim’s mother, who has been admitted to a hospital here, is stated to be critical. Umesh is yet to be arrested.
In one another incident in Azamgarh, a teenage Dalit girl was allegedly gang-raped by four persons in Saraimeer area. The incident took place in the wee hours of Thursday and the incident came to notice after the victim was found in unconscious state. The accused have been identified as Mukesh, Arvind, Vikram and Durgesh. A case has been registered but no one was arrested.
Facing attack from almost all political groups who demanded a CBI probe in the Baduan rape-murder case, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav ordered fast tracking the trial besides dismissing both the accused constables. Akhilesh also announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the victim girls and warned the officials of stern action is any such incident has been repeated anywhere.
Meanwhile a report from Badaun said that the proposed visit of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has been cancelled due to denial of permission by the SPG at the last moment. A three- member team of the National Commission for Women (NCW) led by Samina Safi visited the Katra village and met the family members of the victims and the villagers. The team would submit their report to the chairperson at New Delhi. The other members of the team are Sudha and Hemlata. Another team of Congreess, lead by their legislative Party leader, Pradeep Mathur, also visited Badaun and the Party would further initiate action after the team would submit it’s findings.