Vacate stay on filing closure report in Ruchika case: CBI plea in Punjab and Haryana high court

CHANDIGARH: The CBI has approached the Punjab and Haryana high court, seeking directions for vacation of stay on filing closure report in the abetment to suicide case against S P S Rathore, former Haryana DGP and a convict in the infamous Ruchika molestation case. The agency has pleaded that fixing a date in the present case may enable the disposal of this case which is pending since 2010.
According to the agency, the allegations in the FIR against Rathore were not substantiated on reviewing the entire evidence. This case was registered against Rathore in January 2010 after public outcry following his conviction in the Ruchika molestation case.
In its plea filed before the HC on Friday, CBI has sought vacation of the January 25, 2010, order according to which the presentation of the final report against Rathore was stayed. The agency has further sought permission to present the closure report in the FIR registered on January 11, 2010, under Section 306 (Abetment of suicide), 107 (wilful misrepresentation) and related sections of the IPC.
A fter the completion of investigation, the case was placed in the dormant file. Thereafter, in pur- suance of the police division circular No. 5/2016, this case was added to the investiga- tion in April 2016 and the en- tire evidence was reviewed and allegations levelled in the FIR were not substantiated, and consequently, the case was again kept in the dormant category. After hearing CBI’s plea, the HC has issued notice to all the parties and has ad- journed the case for April 24 for further hearing.
On January 12, 2010, CBI had registered three fresh FIRs levelling charges of at- tempt to murder, abetment to suicide and doctoring the doc- uments pertaining to Ruchika suicide casein the Ruchika molestation case. However, in November 2010, CBI submitted a closure report in two cases---attempt to murder and forging the doc- uments by Rathore, which were finally accepted by court.
Even the Punjab and Haryana high court had accepted CBI’s request to close these two cases on August 9, 2016. Third case of abetment to suicide is still pending and CBI could not file any report as the Punjab and Haryana high court had ordered status quo on that on January 25, 2010. The Ruchika Girhotra case pertains to the molesta- tion of 14-year-old Ruchika in 1990 by then IGP (SPS Rathore) in Haryana