LUDHIANA: A Punjab Police head constable posted at Mundian Kalan police post of Ludhiana commissionerate was booked on Monday for allegedly raping a 24-year-old woman in lockup. AN FIR has been lodged after investigation.
The survivor said in her police complaint filed on December 17, 2020, “A friend of my husband was a frequent visitor to our house. The man’s relatives, Pammi, Pooja, Binda and Mamta, suspected he had illicit relations with me. On December 3, when I was alone at home, the four barged into my house and thrashed me badly. They tore my clothes and made a video on their cellphones.”
The next day, she filed a complaint at Mundian police post. “But, the cops took no action. On December 5, the four again thrashed me at my house. I then left my house and went to my relative’s place. Scared of their attacks, around 12.30am on December 6, I went to my house to vacate it. But they reached there and assaulted me. They called head constable Rakesh Kumar, who without a woman cop, took me and my husband to Mundian police post. At the police post, the head constable assaulted the two of us,” she added.
“During midnight, head constable Rakesh Kumar took me to a room on the first floor of the police post on the pretext of questioning me in front of women cops. But when I reached there, there was no woman cop. The head constable raped me in the room and threatened to implicate my husband in a case if I spoke about it. Afraid, I did not make any complaint for 11 days. But later, I decided to speak about it and filed a complaint with commissioner of police Rakesh Agrawal on December 17,” she added.
CP Rakesh Agarwal said, the head constable has been booked under sections 376-C (intercourse by superintendent of jail, remand home, etc). The head constable has been suspended with immediate effect. Further one more ASI Sukhwinder Singh, home guard Harinder Singh who were present at the police post that night have also been suspended. Besides, the incharge police post ASI Baldev Singh and another ASI Surjan have been transferred to police line.
The four accused have also been booked for thrashing the survivor and making her video. “The FIR against the other accused has been lodged under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 354-B (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC” he added.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)