AGRA: It took 25 months and five attempts at a DNA test for Amit Kumar, 24, to finally get bail. Accused of raping and impregnating a minor girl at his village of Dattawali in Aligarh, Amit, it turned out, was not the father of the survivor’s child.
In July 2018, Amit was home at Dattawali from Faridabad, where he had been working as a foreman for two years, to attend his elder brother’s wedding. After the wedding and the celebrations, he made his way back. But in February 2019, he was summoned again. His mother and sister-in-law had been detained.
Amit rushed back and, soon, was arrested. “The survivors’s father and I had a dispute over a shared piece of farmland in 2017, after which we had cut off all ties,” Amit’s father Sajjan Singh said.
Amit was charged with rape and under sections of the Pocso Act. Along with his elder brother Chandra Shekhar, he was charged with voluntarily causing hurt. With his younger brother Sunil and a distant relative Teekshan Pal, he was also booked for criminal intimidation and house trespass at the Barla police station.
Chandrashekhar got bail, and Sunil and Teekshan’s names were removed from the chargesheet because there wasn’t enough evidence. Amit was taken to the Aligarh district jail.
“I cannot explain how difficult it was. No one would believe me, even within prison,” he told TOI after being released. “You lose track of time inside. I would keep a count of days in my head. It took five attempts before the test could be done,” Amit said. “The first time was in March 2020. The survivor had not come that day. Only my samples and that of the child were taken.”
But because three samples — his, hers and the child’s — were essential to the test, the first round of collection was scrapped. He was taken to the hospital three more times, but the survivor didn’t turn up. The fifth attempt was successful. Finally in July 2020, all samples were taken. The report came in March this year. The report said he was not the father of the child.
“It is apparent that the (FIR) was lodged after considerable delay that too when pregnancy was detected and prosecutrix said the same to be result of rape committed by applicant but DNA report submitted in sealed envelope and opened before this Court reveals that applicant is not biological father of the fetus,” the bail order by Allahabad HC on March 19 said.
“Considering all (the) facts and circumstances of the case, the nature of accusations, severity of the punishment in the case of conviction but without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, this Court is of the view that the applicant may be enlarged on bail with certain conditions.”
Aligarh SSP Kalanidhi Naithani said police would seek legal opinion from the joint director of prosecution after going over the case diary. Amit’s counsel, Hariom Varshney, said, “My next step will be to apply for his discharge from all charges under which he was booked.”