A man, Roshan Uddin (22), accused of raping a 8-year-old girl in Tripura has been arrested after 3 days. His arrest comes after angry villagers blocked a road and protested alleged police laxity in tracing the accused.
The minor girl had gone to the field with her brother on July 28, when accused Roshan Uddin dragged her and raped her. The minor somehow reached home in a bloody condition and narrated the incident, which took place in Jubarajnagar under Dharmanagar Police station of North Tripura district. She is now undergoing treatment in the district hospital, reports Hinduvoice.in, a portal dedicated to reporting on Hindu issues from Bengal and neighbouring areas.
As police could not trace the absconding Roshan Uddin even after 72 hours, on Saturday villagers blocked the Jubarajnagar -Mangalkhali road for two hours and burnt tyres. They demanded immediate arrest and strong punishment of the accused. The road was cleared only after district administration and police officials reached the spot and placated the protestors. Some villagers alleged that police is reluctant to arrest the accused and did not provide any support to the victim’s family.
The protests worked as Roshan Uddin was arrested from Patharkandi, Karimnagar district Assam that same day, reports Tripurapost.com. This again reinforces the widely-held belief that crimes against law-abiding citizens who trust the system are usually lowest priority for Indian law enforcement. Our secular state apparatus seems to acts more promptly only when faced with protests and street violence.
Locals have demanded, with every justification, that the accused should be hanged. But while police may have eventually done its job in this case (after being prodded by protestors), now these villagers are faced with another major impediment to true justice – our labyrinthine and snail-like judiciary. Given the SC’s recent decision to commute the death sentence of a man who had raped and murdered a 4-year-old, the chances of meaningful justice in this case too look dim.
Incidentally, Dharmanagar is the same place about which Islamists like Rana Ayyub had spread fake news of ‘mosques being burnt/vandalized’ last year, after local Hindus took out a rally to protest the genocidal pogrom unleashed against Bangladeshi Hindus over a fake blasphemy allegation during Durga Puja. As per Census 2011, Hindus constitute 73% and Muslims 15% of this district.
