MUNGER: Making a mockery of justice, a self-styled panchayat, or village court, of elders at Garhi village in Bihar's Jamui district ordered four youths to pay a total of Rs 85,000 to a married Muslim woman as compensation for her gang rape by them and also decreed that the "defiled" woman would have to divorce her husband and look for another suitor.
Rubina Khatoon (name changed) was allegedly gang-raped in October last. The panchayat's judgment came in December, two months after the 22-year-old lodged an FIR in the Khaira police station against her four tormentors. The murky episode came to light on Friday when police turned heat on the FIR accused and one of them surrendered in the court of Jamui CJM Mohd Ajazuddin. Reetlal Ravidas even produced a copy of the written agreement reached with Rubina at the panchayat meeting, and sought bail on this ground.
"This is injustice of the worst kind, of the khap panchayat kind," prosecution counsel Gyanchandra Bharadwaj told the court while opposing the bail petition of Reetlal.
According to the prosecution, Rubina was alone at her husband's home at Garhi when Zainul Mian and Mohd Mumtaz visited her. She was told that her mother was ill and wished to see her before breathing her last. Rubina was acquainted with the two men. She told them to wait till her husband returned from work, but they insisted on immediate departure, saying her mother's condition was serious.
Bharadwaj told TOI that the duo had brought a Bolero in which they drove Rubina to a house. She was held captive and sexually assaulted for three days. She was later shifted to another house where too she was gang-raped for three days. Rubina named her tormentors as Munnu Mian besides Zainul, Mumtaz and Reetlal.
Freed after a week, Rubina narrated her woes to her husband, a daily wage earner, and lodged an FIR. While policemen took their own time to act on a poor woman's complaint, village elders sat for a meeting and handed her a written agreement.
Though Rubina signed the paper, she did not accept the compensation of Rs 85,000, Bharadwaj said and added she also continued to live with her husband.
Agreeing with the prosecution counsel, the CJM rejected the bail petition of Reetlal. The three other accused are still at large.
Rubina Khatoon (name changed) was allegedly gang-raped in October last. The panchayat's judgment came in December, two months after the 22-year-old lodged an FIR in the Khaira police station against her four tormentors. The murky episode came to light on Friday when police turned heat on the FIR accused and one of them surrendered in the court of Jamui CJM Mohd Ajazuddin. Reetlal Ravidas even produced a copy of the written agreement reached with Rubina at the panchayat meeting, and sought bail on this ground.
"This is injustice of the worst kind, of the khap panchayat kind," prosecution counsel Gyanchandra Bharadwaj told the court while opposing the bail petition of Reetlal.
According to the prosecution, Rubina was alone at her husband's home at Garhi when Zainul Mian and Mohd Mumtaz visited her. She was told that her mother was ill and wished to see her before breathing her last. Rubina was acquainted with the two men. She told them to wait till her husband returned from work, but they insisted on immediate departure, saying her mother's condition was serious.
Bharadwaj told TOI that the duo had brought a Bolero in which they drove Rubina to a house. She was held captive and sexually assaulted for three days. She was later shifted to another house where too she was gang-raped for three days. Rubina named her tormentors as Munnu Mian besides Zainul, Mumtaz and Reetlal.
Freed after a week, Rubina narrated her woes to her husband, a daily wage earner, and lodged an FIR. While policemen took their own time to act on a poor woman's complaint, village elders sat for a meeting and handed her a written agreement.
Though Rubina signed the paper, she did not accept the compensation of Rs 85,000, Bharadwaj said and added she also continued to live with her husband.
Agreeing with the prosecution counsel, the CJM rejected the bail petition of Reetlal. The three other accused are still at large.
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