Hathras Case: UP Court Acquits 3 Accused, Only 1 Convicted

On March 2, 2023, the Uttar Pradesh court acquitted 3 of the accused and held one guilty in the Hathras gangrape and murder case.

The district's SC/ST court found the main accused, Sandeep Sisodia guilty of culpable homicide not amounting to murder but not of rape. The other three accused, Ravi, Ramu and Luv Kush were set free.

Seema Khushwaha, the lawyer who represented the girl's family said they could challenge the verdict. The final order has not been released yet.

In 2020, the four accused men allegedly involved in the Hathras case were charged with gangrape and murder of a 19-year-old Dalit woman by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The agency has reportedly also invoked charges against the accused under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

Meanwhile, the CBI had also filed a changesheet in connection with the case, on basis of the deceased woman's statement made on September 22.

Suggested Reading: Delhi, Hathras And Now Balrampur: India Continues To Be In Denial Of It’s Rape Culture

Hathras gangrape case

A 19-year-old Dalit woman was allegedly gangraped by four upper-caste men on September 14, and died while undergoing treatment in Delhi on September 29. Following her death, UP police had “forcibly” cremated her body, her family alleged, on September 30, which led to an outrage on social media. The CBI on October 11 registered a case and started its investigation. UP police officers, however, said that the cremation was carried out "as per the wishes of the family".

In October, the Supreme Court directed the Allahabad High Court to monitor CBI's probe. During the case’s first hearing, the court rapped UP government for the deceased’s hurried cremation and asked why was it carried out in the middle of the night. “Would you have burnt the body if the victim was from a well-to-do family?” the bench comprising of Justice Pankaj Mithal and Justice Rajan Roy, had asked.

Later, the main accused Sandeep wrote to Hathras Superintendent of police (SP) Vineet Jaiswal from jail alleging that the deceased woman had been actually tortured by her mother and brother. "She (the girl) lived in my village and I was friendly with her. We would speak over the phone sometimes. Her family did not approve of this," wrote Sandeep. The letter carried thumb impressions of all the accused, Sandeep, Lavkush, Ravi, and Ramu. The woman's family, however, denied these allegations.

Feature Image Credit: NDTV

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