Kathua rape case

2018 Kathua abduction, gang rape and murder case
Protests for the 2018 Kathua abduction, gang rape and murder case
LocationKathua, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Coordinates32°23′06″N 75°31′01″E / 32.385°N 75.517°E / 32.385; 75.517
Date10 January 2018 (2018-01-10)-
17 January 2018 (2018-01-17)
TargetAsifa Bano
Attack type
Abduction, gang rape, and murder
InjuredSexual assault (gang rape)
VictimAsifa Bano
PerpetratorsSix men and a juvenile
MotiveDrive out the nomadic Muslim community of Bakarwals from Hiranagar Tehsil[1]
AccusedSanji Ram
Deepak Khajuria
Tilak Raj
Arvind Dutta
Parvesh Kumar
Vishal (son of Sanji Ram)
A Juvenile (nephew of Sanji Ram)[2][3]
ConvictedSanji Ram
Deepak Khajuria
Surender Verma
Tilak Raj
Anand Dutta
Parvesh Kumar.[4]
VerdictSix of the seven accused were convicted
ConvictionsSanji Ram, Deepak Khajuria and Parvesh Kumar were sentenced to life imprisonment of 25 years.
Tilak Raj, Anand Dutta and Surender Verma were sentenced to five years in jail for destroying evidence.
Court acquitted Vishal due to lack of evidence.
A juvenile, will be tried at a juvenile court.[5]

The Kathua rape case involved the abduction, gang rape, and murder of an 8-year-old girl, Asifa Bano, by seven males (six men and a juvenile) in January 2018 in the Rasana village near Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, India. A chargesheet for the case was filed, the accused were arrested and the trial began in Kathua on 16 April 2018.[6][7] The victim belonged to the nomadic Bakarwal community, and the crime was a bid to terrorise the group off Jammu.[8] She disappeared for a week before her body was discovered by the villagers a kilometer away from the village.[9][10][8][11] The incident made national news when charges were filed against eight men in April 2018. The arrests of the accused led to protests by the Panthers Party and other local groups, who sought justice for the victim.[12][13][14][15] The gang rape and murder, as well as the support the accused received especially from local officials of the [ Political Party ] , sparked widespread outrage in India and world-wide.[16][17][9]

On 10 June 2019, six of the seven defendants were convicted and one acquitted.[18] Three of those convicted were sentenced to life imprisonment and the remaining three to five years.[19] In October 2019, court ordered a First Information Report (FIR) against 6 members of the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which probed the case, for allegedly torturing and coercing witnesses to give false statements.[20]

  1. ^ "'Rape-murder in Kathua meant to drive out Muslim tribe' - Times of India ►". The Times of India. 12 April 2018.
  2. ^ "Temple at centre of tragedy: No one coming to mandir for days now - Times of India". The Times of India. 13 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Kathua case: Charges of rape and murder framed against 7 accused". The Economic Times. 7 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Temple Priest, Nephew, Son: Who Was Convicted and Who Was Acquitted in Kathua Rape and Murder Case". Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  5. ^ India Today Web Desk (11 June 2019). "Kathua rape-murder case: Life sentence for 3 - All that happened in 10 points". Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b "The brutal crime that has Kashmir on edge". BBC News. 12 April 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  9. ^ a b Eltagouri, Marwa (11 April 2018). "An 8-year-old's rape and murder inflames tensions between Hindus and Muslims in India". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  10. ^ Gettleman, Jeffrey (11 April 2018). "An 8-Year-Old's Rape and Killing Fuels Religious Tensions in India". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  11. ^ "Dedicated police team resisted odds to crack Asifa rape case". Asia Times. 12 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  12. ^ "Over 70 JKNPP activists detained in Jammu". Kashmir Reader. Archived from the original on 20 April 2018. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  13. ^ "Kathua rape case: JKNPP demands CBI inquiry". Catch News India. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  14. ^ "After Kathua Rape, False Binaries Expose Hate and Mistrust in Jammu". CNN-News18. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  15. ^ "Out of Cabinet, Lal Singh goes vitriolic against CM". The Tribune. 18 April 2018.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference BBC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference Outlook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ "Kathua child rape and murder: India court finds six guilty". BBC News. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  19. ^ "Kathua Rape Case Court Result". News Nation. 10 June 2019. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  20. ^ "In Fresh Twist to Kathua Rape-Murder, Court Orders Case Against SIT Members for 'Torturing' Witnesses". News18. 22 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.