A Saharanpur court on Friday sentenced a former station house officer (SHO) and a retired circle officer (CO) to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment each for raping a woman who approached a police station in 2015 to enquire about her husband’s alleged false implication in a criminal case. The verdict brings an end to her legal battle spanning nearly 11 years and three months.
The convicts, Brajmohan Yadav, the then SHO, and Vegpal Singh, also known as Vedpal Singh, were sent to jail following the verdict delivered by the second fast-track court. They were additionally sentenced to five years’ imprisonment under the intimidation charge, with both sentences running concurrently. Failure to pay the fines will invite additional imprisonment of one year under the gangrape charge and four months under the intimidation charge. The woman had gone there to seek details about her husband’s alleged false implication in a criminal case. Her sister-in-law, who tried to rescue her, was also allegedly assaulted. Four police personnel were initially accused, including Yadav, Singh, outpost in-charge Pankaj Dhama and a constable. However, proceedings against Dhama could not be initiated following claims about his mental health, while the constable could not be identified and traced. The trial eventually proceeded against Yadav and Singh. Tomar alleged that the victim and her husband faced intimidation, assaults and attempts to cause accidents during the prolonged legal battle. Some cases registered against the couple at Deoband police station also remain pending. Public prosecutor Nepal Singh represented the prosecution.
The court also imposed a fine of ₹ 1.20 lakh on each convict – ₹ 1 lakh under Section 376D (gangrape) and ₹ 20,000 under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The case was registered at Deoband police station under Sections 376D and 506 of the IPC.
Advocate Rajeev Tomar, representing the victim, said the incident took place when the two officers were posted at a police station in Saharanpur.
It also asked the secretary of the District Legal Services Authority, Saharanpur, to ensure that she receives compensation under the applicable victim compensation scheme or any other relevant government scheme. The court directed that the entire fine collected under the gangrape provision and 75% of the fine under the intimidation charge be paid to the victim.
After her complaints to local police and senior officers allegedly went unanswered, the woman approached the Allahabad high court. On its directions, the chief judicial magistrate (CJM) ordered registration of a case and handed the investigation to the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID). The agency filed a final report, which the victim challenged through a protest petition before pursuing the matter as a complaint case.
