An adivasi woman was gangraped in broad daylight at Jhadol Tehsil 60 km from Udaipur District. The AIPWA fact-finding team that visited the spot learned that the victim was walking through a path in the fields to catch a bus from her in-laws' place to go to her parents' house. Just then 3 persons came there on a motorcycle and the driver of the motorcycle left after dropping the other two at the spot. These two persons dragged her to a lonely spot, beat her up, raped her, tore her clothes, snatched away her mobile and throttled her. She went to the nearby police station and narrated what had befallen her, after which the police inspected the crime site, registered a case and started looking for the culprits. Reading reports of the incident in newspapers the next day, the AIPWA team reached the spot and got the details from the police station. The team went to the victim's house to meet her but her mother told them she had been taken to the Thana and had not returned yet. When asked, her father said that she must have gone to her in-laws' place. The team members, went there but did not find her there either. Her mother-in-law, father-in-law and brother-in-law, all of whom we met, were all worried and sad. Her family members are in fear and demanding the immediate arrest of the perpetrators.
In the name of investigation the victim was kept in the Thana from morning till evening and reached home at 8.30 pm. She was not even given a copy of the FIR, which was made available only after AIPWA leaders intervention. She was worried as she did not know what was written in her medical report and complaint, and feared that the rapists would get away without strict punishment. Narrating the incident to the AIPWA team, the victim showed her injury marks and said that her whole body was aching, causing her to be afraid. She had pleaded with the rapists to spare her and show mercy on her children but they only beat her more brutally. She somehow managed to escape, and her husband and entire family are standing with her and demanding strict punishment for the rapists. The AIPWA team comprised State Secretary Sudha Chaudhury, District Secretary Dr Razia, AICCTU leader Saurabh Naruka, CPIML District Secretary Chandradev Ola, Rinku Parihar and others.
AIPWA makes the following demands:
- Immediate arrest of the perpetrators, fast track court trial, and punishment.
- The police should arrange counselling for the victim and help to build her and her family's mental strength and self-confidence.
- Compensation for the victim.
- Medical treatment should be arranged.
- No kind of political or administrative pressure should be put on the family.
- The victim and her family should be provided adequate security as one of the perpetrators is said to be a history-sheeter.
- 7. A free and fair enquiry into the entire incident should be held.
