'Rape victim' fails to identify accused, 5 freed

A Delhi court has acquitted five men from a case of kidnapping and gang raping a 25-year-old married woman as the victim failed to identify them and resiled from her initial statement.

Additional sessions judge Vijay Kumar Dahiya acquitted Delhi residents Raj Kumar, Rakesh, Rakesh Kumar, Rahul and Sandeep saying the woman was a material witness of the case, but has failed to utter even a single word against the accused.

“From the evidence of the prosecution, it is clearly revealed that the victim had not uttered even a single incriminating evidence against the accused. Since there is not an iota of incriminating evidence against the accused, therefore the prosecution is held to have absolutely failed to prove its case against the accused persons,” the court said.

Acquitting all the five, the court said the victim, being a material witness, has not supported the case of the prosecution and resiled from her initial statement made to police on the basis of which an FIR was lodged.

The prosecution said the incident took place on June 5, 2011 when the woman had come to her parental house to meet her father who had met with an accident.

On the fateful day, when she had gone out with her sister to celebrate her birthday at a nearby market, the five men kidnapped both of them at knife-point and drove them away in a car, it said.

The victim’s sister, however, was let off as she was pregnant, while the woman was taken to a secluded flat in west Delhi where she was gang raped by them, police said.

Inquest on inmate’s death

A Delhi court has launched an inquest into the mysterious death of an undertrial barely five days after he was lodged in Tihar Jail.

Metropolitan magistrate Naresh Kumar Laka is conducting an inquest proceedings into the death of Raj Kumar at DDU Hospital. Central Delhi resident Kumar, 46, was arrested on May 10 after he was found in possession of illicit liquor. A case under the Excise Act was registered against him and he was remanded to judicial custody.

Five days later, he was rushed to DDU hospital though he allegedly had no health problems. He died after spending a week at the hospital. The doctor’s report showed some injury marks on the body. Adding to the suspicious nature of Kumar’s death was the fact that his family was not informed of his hospitalisation. They were contacted only after his death, said a court source.