Human Rights panel calls for inquiry into teen rape-murder case by SIT led by woman officer

A panel of the Punjab Human Rights Commission, which has conducted an inquiry into the November 22 incident of rape and murder of a teenage girl in Jalandhar, has written to its Chairman Justice Ranjit Singh (retd) calling for an inquiry into the matter by an SIT headed by IPS-rank woman officer.

The panel has reported that the Jalandhar Commissionerate Police has failed to conduct an independent inquiry into the incident and its officials have been negligent in preparing a preliminary report too. The officials do not want to act against its negligent staff. Hence a woman IPS officer should lead an SIT, who should be tasked with conducting thorough probe into the incident while also preparing a report about police staff that was negligent.

The panel has reported several glaring lacunae left by the police in the case which could weaken the case. Dismissed ASI Mangat Ram has reportedly told the panel that when the matter of the missing girl was reported at the police post of Basti Bawa Khel area at 7-7:15 pm, he was the only cop present.

"So, he had to take along safai sewak Chetan with him. Chetan too has corroborated his statement. Later ASIs Lakhvir Singh and Hardeep Singh and chowki incharge SI Ajmer Lal also reached the spot. While search was going on in the area, the SI left the spot saying that he had some work at his place. The other cops also left the place and it was at 10 pm that Mangat Ram received the call that the body had been found from accused Harminder Singh Rimpy's place", the panel has reported.

The panel has informed its Chairman that while the crime occurred at 4 pm on November 22, the police were informed at 7 pm and the body was recovered at 10 pm, the FIR had been lodged 18 hours late on November 23, which could help the accused. "It was not just ASI Mangat Ram who was negligent in his role but also other cops who got the information through police control room, including SHO Basti Bawa Khel Jai Inder, the two ASIs, ACP Gagandeep Singh and others", it has reported.

The report further reads, "The delay on the part of the cops in being able to find the body of the victim helped the accused plan to dispose it of. He had dragged the body of the victim to a washroom on the front side of the house, the passage to which he had blocked by putting some mattresses and a washing machine in front of its door." He had arranged for a bag and a car too.

The panel has reported, "An unidentified man had been called in by the accused to help him with disposing of the body. The police have surprisingly not mentioned about this person, nor have collected any evidence about it. Had the CCTV evidence not come to the fore, had the residents of the area not forced the accused to open his house and spotted the girl's body in the washroom of the accused, he could have been successful in his plan".

The panel has also said that while the CP had ordered inquiry against ASI Mangat Ram on November 24 with ACP Ajay Singh and given him two months to handle this, he was dismissed in two days. It has also said that while the accused was taken into custody between 10:30 pm and 11 pm on the fateful night, his arrest was shown for November 24 which again was incorrect.