New Delhi: No politician or mediaperson will be allowed entry into the village of the gangrape-murder victim in Hathras until the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the Uttar Pradesh government completes its probe, Hathras additional superintendent of police Prakash Kumar told PTI on Friday.
The Hathras administration had Thursday clamped prohibitory orders under CrPC Section 144, which bars assembly of more than four people.
Political parties had staged protests to demand justice for the 19-year-old Dalit woman, who died earlier this week, a fortnight after she was gang raped allegedly by Thakur men. The police and administration’s actions in the case have been severely criticised, especially after the police cremated the woman’s body in the middle of the night against her family’s wishes.
Amid countrywide outrage over the case, UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath had on Wednesday formed a three-member SIT, which was instructed to submit its report by October 14, according to officials.
Meanwhile, the woman’s family has alleged that their phones have been confiscated and their outdoor movements confined. “My family members are being threatened. My uncle asked me to try to reach out to the media. My uncle was assaulted by DM sahib yesterday, after which he fell unconscious,” a young relative alleged.
Also read: Allahabad HC Takes Cognisance of Hathras Case, Strongly Criticises Police Actions
The district magistrate has been caught on video asking the woman’s family to soften their stance and change their statement. “Half of the media people have left today, the other half will leave by tomorrow. Only we will stand with you. It is up to you whether you want to change your statement or not,” district magistrate Praveen Laxkar is heard saying.
The developments came as Friday saw Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) workers staging protests in Hathras, while a two-member delegation of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) was allegedly manhandled in a ruckus at the village’s border.
Some media personnel also alleged manhandling by the administration and police officials at the site, and Seema Kushwaha, who served as Nirbhaya’s family’s lawyer, alleged that she was not allowed to meet the family.
Five policemen suspended
Five policemen, including the superintendent of police, from the Uttar Pradesh police have been suspended by the government. The SIT had called for their suspension, alleging that they have mismanaged the case. The team also called for lie-detector tests on those arrested and the victim’s family.
According to Indian Express, those suspended include Hathras SP Vikrant Vir, Circle Officer Ram Shabd, Inspector Dinesh Meena, Sub Inspector Jagveer Singh and the head constable.
Also read: What the UP Police Hopes to Gain With Its ‘No Evidence of Rape’ Claim in Hathras Case
UP minister calls Hathras incident a ‘small issue’
Uttar Pradesh minister Ajeet Singh Pal on Friday described the gang-rape and murder as “a small issue”, asserting that the Dalit teen was not raped.
“Doctors have already made it clear that the Hathras woman was not raped,” Pal, the UP minister of state for slectronics and information technology. The police and members of the Yogi Adityanath government have been trying to claim that the woman was not raped, just because no sperm was found on the body. However, a number of legal experts have reiterated that sperm does not need to be found for the offence of rape to be made out, and that the medical report makes brutal sexual violence and rape clear.
Also read: In UP, Maintaining ‘Law and Order’ Also Means a Secret, Rushed Cremation of Dalit Rape Victim
“We can do nothing if the opposition is attacking (the government). They have no issue and are raking up such small issues intermittently. They are just raising issues and doing nothing in the public interest,” the minister told reporters when asked about the opposition’s attack against the government over the issue.
When reporters countered him, according to PTI, Pal said that the matter was being investigated and all findings would be made public.
(With PTI inputs)
