UP Rape Survivor Ends Life Due To Alleged Police Negligence

Police arrested the accused early on Friday following the death of a 16-year-old girl who hanged herself in the Haidergarh area of Uttar Pradesh's Barabanki district after facing constant harassment and blackmail from her rapist.

The deceased minor girl’s family blamed the police’s inaction for her demise. They alleged that the local police registered a case and tried to settle it after the crime was reported on June 8. The girl’s mother claimed that the police pressured them to compromise and let the accused be booked under 151 CrPC and get him released.

UP Girl Ends Life After Police Negligence

In accordance with Section 151, the police can arrest a person without a warrant or order of the magistrate when they are aware that they are planning to commit a cognizable offence.

The mother added that the accused had threatened her daughter of raping her again and will make sure that she won't be able to show her face anywhere. Superintendent of Police of Barabanki Dinesh Kumar Singh said that all the allegations were being investigated, and the department has initiated an inquiry against the suspended Sub Inspector Yogendra Singh.

The SP said that an FIR was filed on June 17 under sections 376 (rape) and 511 (attempt to commit offences) of the Indian Penal Code, and further actions would be taken.

He said that the deceased girls’ medical examination had already been conducted and a statement under CrPC Section 164 was to be recorded. He informed them that the accused had been taken into custody and was being questioned after information about the girl ending her life reached the police. The SP added that the girl had chosen to end her life because of some activities of the accused and that a thorough investigation was ongoing.

Why Didn't Police Take Action Sooner?

Why didn’t the police take the necessary action immediately upon receiving the complaint from the girl? With taboo and victim shaming being largely prevalent in our society, it requires courage and determination for women to open up about the sexual crimes they are facing. And when they do so, isn’t it the responsibility of authorities to take swift and adequate action against the accused to ensure the well-being of the survivor? How can the police be so negligent towards such a heinous crime?

Why was the process delayed? Why were the girl and her mother pressured to compromise? Can't imagine what it would have been like for the girl to not receive support from the police. How traumatised the 16-year-old would have been if she had felt that ending her life would be a better option than living! It’s stomach-churning to even think about the level of harassment she faced?

The alleged lack of swift action and unprofessional behaviour of the cops seem to have led to the accused threatening the girl, which in turn pushed her to take the extreme step of ending her life. While it’s necessary that the accused be punished for his crimes, will the police's swift action now bring back the girl from the dead? Wouldn't the girl still be alive if the police had taken the necessary action sooner?

Suggested Reading: Asked To Compromise In Rape Case, Minor Dalit Girl Dies By Suicide

Views expressed by the author are their own