The government is under pressure from various quarters to file an appeal against the acquittal of 18 persons, including eight dismissed police personnel, in the child prostitution racket.
A court in Puducherry in April acquitted 18 persons, including eight dismissed police personnel, in the case after the prosecution failed to prove its case and most of the witnesses turned hostile during trial.
A number of political parties and outfits, including the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) and Federation for People’s Rights, have urged the government to make an expeditious appeal in the Madras High Court against the acquittal.
According to G. Sugumaran, secretary, Federation for People’s Rights, “a shoddy investigation combined with key witnesses turning hostile led to the acquittal of the accused.
“From the beginning, the investigation was carried out by the police in a biased manner. An Investigating Officer in the case had then claimed that they had the call records of over 300 numbers. A few politicians and officials were suspected to be involved in the racket but the police personnel alone were dismissed from service while the names of others involved were not revealed,” he said.
AIDWA’s charge
The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has demanded that the government go on an appeal against the acquittal.
AIDWA vice-president and CPI(M) central committee member Sudha Sundararaman said that a magisterial inquiry indicted the accused of running the racket. After being released on bail, the accused allegedly intimidated the survivors and witnesses and forced them to turn hostile leading to the acquittal of all the accused in the case, she said.
Ms. Sundararaman said that crimes against women and children had been on the rise in the Union Territory. The government should immediately file an appeal failing which AIDWA would mobilise people and hold a series of protests, she said.
R. Rajangam, secretary of CPI(M), said an identification parade was conducted and nine police personnel were named in the chargesheet and dismissed from service.
Rising crime graph
Though the trial in cases involving crimes against women and children should have been completed within one year nothing had been done. The trial was delayed for more than four years. This would not only set a bad precedent but also pave the way for rise in crimes against women and children.
According to prosecution, the case was registered on April 11, 2014 at Grand Bazaar police station following a startling revelations of two girls, aged 14 and 16, to the Child Welfare Committee. The case was later entrusted to the CB-CID in May 2014, leading to the arrest of the key accused, including the prime accused K. Pushpa and six others.