Magistrate booked for allegedly asking gang-rape survivor to strip in court

Jaipur: A magistrate was booked on Tuesday in Rajasthan’s Karauli district for allegedly asking an 18-year-old Dalit gang-rape survivor to strip in the court to show her injuries, an officer familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
Deputy superintendent of police (ST-SC) cell Mina Meena said that the survivor had filed a complaint on March 30 alleging that the Hindaun court magistrate “asked her to strip in order to see her injuries.”
“She refused to strip, and after recording the statement in the court, she registered a complaint against the magistrate. A case was registered at Kotwali police station under charges of outraging modesty,” said Meena.
Meena said the magistrate was under section 345 (wrongful confinement) of the Indian Penal Code and SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act based on the complaint filed by the woman.
A senior official from the Rajasthan high court said an investigation into the matter is underway. “The case has been transferred to a team led by vigilance registrar of the Rajasthan high court Ajay Singh Jatt who also visited the rape survivor in Karauli on Wednesday and recorded her statement,” he said.
HT could not reach out to the accused magistrate despite repeated attempts.
According to police, the woman was allegedly raped on March 19 by three men.
Gridihari Lal, Hindaun City deputy commissioner of police (DSP), said that three men, aged between 20-22, abducted the woman from her residence in the evening when her parents were away, took her to one of their own houses and gang-raped her.
A case was lodged under sections 376 (rape) and 376 D (gangrape) of the Indian Penal Code against three men and a first information report (FIR) into the matter was registered on March 27 at Hindaun Sadar police station through a court referral.
According to the DSP, the accused and their family members are all absconding since the incident. “Our teams are searching for the culprits. Further investigation is underway,” he said.