Re-investigate murder of woman CA, HC tells Haryana police

A harrowing tale of a young chartered accountant’s (CA) attempted rape, murder and prima facie attempts by the Haryana Police to shield the accused, has surfaced in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The victim, Jyoti, was not only hospitalised for five days after an attempted rape, she was also allegedly threatened by the accused.

The police initially refused to register a case; and later filed a cancellation report claiming a squabble had taken place between the victim and the accused over the chaining of a dog. She was later killed allegedly by a juvenile in Delhi.

Taking up Jyoti’s petition filed before her murder, Justice Daya Chaudhary has directed the Haryana Director-General of Police to get the case reinvestigated by two crime branch IPS officers.

The case

Jyoti and her friend, Ritu, were returning home in Gurgaon on July 24, 2011, when some persons intercepted them.

Joginder allegedly took her to a vacant plot before attempting to rape her. People gathered around the plot after an alarm was raised. But Joginder threatened to kill them after brandishing a pistol. Ankit jabbed her with a knife, while Amit, Lala and an unknown person tore her clothes.

Ritu and her mother, Kusum, were thrashed as they tried to intervene. Sensing the arrival of police on Kusum’s call, the accused fled. An unconscious Jyoti was taken to Civil Hospital, Gurgaon, and was admitted there for five days. Jyoti claimed on August 8, 2011, the accused again stopped her and Ritu before threatening her with abduction in case she forwarded a complaint.

Acting on her complaint, a magistrate, on August 12, 2011, directed the registration of an FIR. But a cancellation report was soon submitted. The police allegedly connived with the accused to concoct a story that Jyoti fell and sustained injuries following an argument over chaining of a dog.

The police then allegedly got her signature on blank papers for quashing the FIR. Her counsel said in an affidavit dated November 24, 2011, she had alleged that the Investigating Officer, ACP Rajesh Duggal, was exerting pressure upon her and uncle Rajinder Singh for the case’s withdrawal. Ultimately, she was killed, along with two others as apprehended and an FIR was registered against a juvenile on April 23 at police station (Mahendra Park in Delhi’s Jahangir Puri).

The verdict

Justice Chaudhary asserted: “This is an unfortunate incident, which has shaken the credibility of the investigating agency and weakens faith of the common man in police… A young girl, no more on this Earth, was crying from the top of roof for justice but she failed to get the same.” (The Tribune)