English हिन्दी
Connect with us

India News

Kathua gangrape-cum-murder of minor: Six of seven accused convicted, juvenile acquitted

Published

7 years ago

on

Kathua gangrape-cum-murder of minor: Six of seven accused convicted, juvenile acquitted

Three of the six accused in the rape-and-murder case of an eight-year-old nomadic girl in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua were awarded life imprisonment by a special court in Pathankot today (Monday, June 10).

The remaining three were sentenced to five years of imprisonment. The seventh accused, Vishal, was acquitted by the court while an accused juvenile faces a separate trial, reported The Indian Express.

Former government officer Sanji Ram, who was believed to be the mastermind, was among those convicted by a special fast-track court in Pathankot earlier today. Others convicted include Special Police Officers, investigating officers.

Ram’s son Vishal Jangotra was acquitted, while an accused juvenile faces a separate trial.

Sanji Ram, the caretaker of the temple where the crime took place, Special Police Officer Deepak Khajuria and Parvesh Kumar, a civilian, were convicted under Ranbir Penal Code sections pertaining to criminal conspiracy, murder, kidnapping, gangrape, destruction of evidence, drugging the victim and common intention.

The three main accused have been sentenced to 25 years for charges of gangrape, PTI reported.

The trial, held in-camera, ended on June 3. Elaborate security arrangements were made for the verdict today in the high-profile and volatile case.

According to the lawyers, the accused — including retired government official Sanjhi Ram, special police officers (SPO) Deepak Khajuria and Surender Verma, Head Constable Tilak Raj, Sub-Inspector Anand Dutta and civilian Parvesh Kumar — “were found guilty under several sections.”

Also Read: Actor, playwright, author, activist Girish Karnad passes away at 81

The lawyers, representing the eight-year-old in the special court, told the media that the key accused Ram, Khajuria and Kumar were held guilty under 366 (kidnapping), Section 302 (murder) and section 336 (rape) and 34 (common intention).

The three policemen were convicted under Section 201 (destruction of evidence).

Around 114 witnesses’ accounts were recorded in the case.

The eight-year-old girl from Bakerwal nomadic was kidnapped on January 10 last year and held captive at a village temple in Kathua. She was drugged, starved and repeatedly raped for days. Finally, she was strangled and her head was bashed in with a rock. One of the accused allegedly begged to rape her one last time before she was killed.

Describing the murder, the police chargesheet states: “After committing the barbaric act of rape on the minor victim, the accused Khajuria kept her neck on his left thigh and started applying force with his hands on her neck in order to kill her; Khajuria was unsuccessful in killing her, the juvenile killed her by pressing his knees against her back while strangulating the girl by applying force on both the ends of her chunni. Thereafter, the accused, in order to make sure that the victim is dead, hit her twice on the head with a stone.”

The child’s mutilated body was found in a forest area on January 17. Three days later, one of the accused – reportedly a juvenile – was arrested by police. He is Sanji Ram’s nephew. The trial in his case is yet to begin because a petition on determining his age is yet to be heard by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.

Amid nationwide outrage over the savage killing of the child, the case was handed over to the Crime Branch, following which a police sub-inspector and a head constable were arrested for destroying evidence. Sanji Ram, a retired revenue officer, surrendered on March 20 last year.

Investigations suggested that the girl was raped and murdered in an effort to terrorise the Muslim Bakerwalnomads frequenting the Kathua area and drive them out.

The case had taken a communal turn when an outfit called ‘Hindu Ekta Manch’ was set up to support the accused with two BJP ministers of then J&K Government backing it. Even the lawyers in Kathua had attempted to prevent the prosecution from submitting the challan against accused persons before the court of law. The girl had to be buried 8KM away from her village as her body was not allowed to be buried in the local village.

The issue drove a wedge between the then BJP-Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) alliance in the state after two BJP leaders – Chowdhury Lal Singh and Prakash Ganga – participated in a rally organised in support of the accused.

The Supreme Court ordered that the trial be shifted out of Jammu and Kashmir after lawyers at the Kathua court prevented the Crime Branch from filing charges amid high drama on April 9.

Also Read: Journalist’s wife moves SC against his arrest for post on UP CM Adityanath

All the accused, barring the juvenile, were shifted to Gurdaspur jail on the orders of the top court. It also restricted the appearance of defence lawyers to one or a maximum of two per accused, and ordered day-to-day in-camera trial by the district and sessions judge at Pathankot. Late last year, the family of the Kathua victim dropped their lawyer – Deepika Rajawat – accusing her of not making herself available for court hearings. Rajawat, for her part, said she had been receiving death threats ever since she took up the case.

Reactions:

Former Army chief and BJP MP VK Singh, welcoming the verdict, tweeted: “The guilty from Kathua rape-murder case are convicted- it gives me hope that such brutalities will not go unpunished. But it also makes me think of our collective consciousness as a society- why should Kathua or Aligarh happen?  Need to educate our boys on how to treat and respect women.”

“Amen to that. The guilty deserve the most severe punishment possible under law. And to those politicians who defended the accused, vilified the victim & threatened the legal system no words of condemnation are enough,” said National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah.

Welcoming the judgment, former chief minister and Peoples Development Party chief Mehbooba Mufti, tweeted: “Welcome the judgement. High time we stop playing politics over a heinous crime where an 8 year old child was drugged, raped repeatedly & then bludgeoned to death. Hope loopholes in our judicial system are not exploited & culprits get exemplary punishment.”

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

India News

PM Modi takes aim at critics with Dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC centenary address

PM Modi revived his dimagi Naxal remark at SRCC’s centenary celebrations and spoke about India’s development journey.

Published

8 hours ago

on

September 6, 2026

By

PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi revived his ‘dimagi Naxal’ remark while addressing the centenary celebrations of Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) in Delhi on Saturday, using the term to criticise his opponents.

Speaking to students at the Delhi college, PM Modi described the phrase as a “homeopathic pill” and said it had prompted those he described as “dimagi Naxals” to come forward and reveal their views.

The prime minister also used his address to speak to Gen-Z about India’s development journey and asked students to consider the challenges the country had faced in the past.

PM Modi recalls past crises

During his speech, PM Modi referred to the 2013 Kedarnath disaster and the 2008 global financial crisis while criticising the handling of national emergencies by previous governments.

He said the government at the time of the Kedarnath disaster was shaken and questioned its ability to respond to the crisis.

Referring to the 2008 banking crisis, PM Modi alleged that the government of the time failed to effectively deal with the situation and claimed that India’s banking system was pushed close to collapse.

Prime minister lists challenges faced by his government

PM Modi also highlighted several major global crises that occurred during his government’s tenure.

He mentioned the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, disruptions to global trade and supply chains, and the crisis in West Asia.

The prime minister said there had been concerns that India would struggle during these crises but argued that the country had continued to move forward.

PM Modi’s earlier SRCC visit

PM Modi had earlier visited SRCC in 2013, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. His speech at the college received significant attention, particularly on social media, ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election.

His latest visit came during the college’s centenary celebrations, where his address focused on young people, India’s development ambitions and the challenges faced by the country.

Continue Reading

India News

India Metro Rail Network May Overtake US in 2 Years

India’s metro rail network has reached 1,170 km across 26 cities. Union minister Manohar Lal said the country could overtake the US in network length within two years.

Published

22 hours ago

on

September 5, 2026

By

Manohar Lal Khattar

India is on track to become the country with the second-largest metro rail network in the world after China, with Union Minister Manohar Lal saying the country could overtake the United States within the next two years.

India’s metro rail network has now expanded to 1,170 km across 26 cities. The network is only 216 km shorter than the US metro rail network, which stands at 1,386 km, according to figures cited by the minister.

India’s metro network expands rapidly

Speaking after the inauguration of an extended metro service in Indore, Manohar Lal highlighted the pace at which metro connectivity has grown in India.

He said metro services were operational across just 245 km in five cities when Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office in 2014. The network has since expanded to 1,170 km across 26 cities.

The minister said India could overtake the US in terms of metro rail network length in the next two years and become the world’s second-largest country in this segment after China.

China currently has around 8,000 km of metro rail lines, according to the figures cited by the minister.

Indore metro extension inaugurated

The minister made the remarks after inaugurating an extended section of the Indore metro. The project was built at a cost of around Rs 2,850 crore.

The Indore metro was earlier operating commercially on a six-km stretch between Gandhi Nagar and Super Corridor-3 stations. Following the extension, the service will operate on a 17-km route between Gandhi Nagar and Malviya Nagar Chauraha.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said the metro service would mark a new phase in Indore’s development. He also said the network would eventually be extended to Ujjain and other nearby areas.

India’s metro rail network: Key figures

  • India currently has 1,170 km of operational metro rail network.
  • Metro services are operational across 26 cities.
  • The US has around 1,386 km of metro rail network.
  • India is currently 216 km behind the US.
  • China has around 8,000 km of metro rail lines.
  • India’s operational network stood at 245 km across five cities in 2014.

Continue Reading

India News

PM Modi returns to SRCC after 13 years, revisits 2013 glass full speech

PM Narendra Modi returned to SRCC after 13 years for its centenary celebrations, revisiting themes from his landmark 2013 address.

Published

23 hours ago

on

September 5, 2026

By

PM Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned to Delhi University’s Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) on Saturday, 13 years after his previous visit to the institution as Gujarat chief minister. 

His latest visit came as SRCC marked its centenary celebrations. Modi’s 2013 address at the college had attracted significant attention as he spoke about India’s youth, governance and the country’s demographic potential.

In 2013, Modi was Gujarat chief minister and had not yet been named the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. He returned to the same campus this year as Prime Minister, having completed 12 years as Prime Minister and serving his third consecutive term. 

What PM Modi said at SRCC in 2013

The 2013 lecture was titled Emerging Business Models in the Global Scenario. The address also covered governance and India’s young population.

He described India’s youth as a source of national strength rather than simply a group of new-age voters. He also highlighted India’s demographic advantage and argued that the country needed to make better use of its young population.

One of the notable moments from the speech involved a glass of water.  Modi contrasted the conventional descriptions of a glass as half full or half empty and said he viewed it as full, with half containing water and the other half air.

The speech also included his remarks on technology and young Indians. Referring to an anecdote from a visit to Taiwan, Modi used the phrase “mouse-charmers” to describe Indians using computers and suggested that young Indians had the ability to influence the world through technology.

‘Minimum government, maximum governance’

Modi’s 2013 address also touched on governance. He spoke about the role of government and the need for better governance.

He also spoke about India’s potential in the 21st century. 

Modi returns as PM for SRCC centenary

The September 5 visit coincided with Teachers’ Day and SRCC’s 100th anniversary. The Prime Minister’s Office had announced that Modi would participate in the college’s centenary celebrations and address the gathering. SRCC was established in 1926 by industrialist and philanthropist Sir Shri Ram.

Earlier this year, Modi also met the SRCC governing body at his residence in April in connection with the college’s centenary celebrations and released a commemorative postage stamp marking the occasion. 

The return to SRCC came 13 years after his 2013 appearance at the college, when he addressed students as Gujarat chief minister.

Continue Reading

Trending

© Copyright 2022 APNLIVE.com