J&K COURT JAILS WOMEN FOR RETRACTING RAPE CHARGE from Law Teller
In a first, a sessions court in Jammu and Kashmir have convicted two women for initially accusing two men of rape and later retracting their statement during the trial.
The sessions court in Ramban has convicted these two women for perjury and sentenced them to three months imprisonment besides imposing a fine of Rs5,000 each. The court later also acquitted the two men, a school teacher and a surrendered militant of rape charges.
Police said this seemed to be first of its kind case in J&K since the amendments to Code of Criminal Procedure in 2007 wherein the prosecutrixes have been convicted for perjury. The judgment would surely go a long way in strengthening the criminal justice system, they said.
The case dates back to 2009 when one Farooq Ahmad lodged a complaint with the Banihal police alleging that his wife and niece were enticed and raped by the above said men throughout the night after the two had gone to the local market. “During investigation, their statements were recorded under section 164 A CrPC”, a police spokesman said.
However, during the trial, the prosecutrixes retracted from their statement. Taking a serious note of the retraction of statements recorded under section CrPC, the sessions judge took a suo moto cognizance in the matter, and started proceedings under, CrPC against the women.
While disposing of the case, the court observed that the practice of retracting on charges by prosecutrix was rampant earlier also when there was no provision of Section 164-A CrPC. “State legislature in its supreme wisdom amended the Code of Criminal Procedure by inserting Section 164-A to curb the menace of perjury by the witnesses. It made a provision for recording the statements of material witnesses by a magistrate on oath during investigation so that the cases do not fail in view of retraction by the witnesses during the trial”, police said quoting the judge.
The sessions court in Ramban has convicted these two women for perjury and sentenced them to three months imprisonment besides imposing a fine of Rs5,000 each. The court later also acquitted the two men, a school teacher and a surrendered militant of rape charges.
Police said this seemed to be first of its kind case in J&K since the amendments to Code of Criminal Procedure in 2007 wherein the prosecutrixes have been convicted for perjury. The judgment would surely go a long way in strengthening the criminal justice system, they said.
The case dates back to 2009 when one Farooq Ahmad lodged a complaint with the Banihal police alleging that his wife and niece were enticed and raped by the above said men throughout the night after the two had gone to the local market. “During investigation, their statements were recorded under section 164 A CrPC”, a police spokesman said.
However, during the trial, the prosecutrixes retracted from their statement. Taking a serious note of the retraction of statements recorded under section CrPC, the sessions judge took a suo moto cognizance in the matter, and started proceedings under, CrPC against the women.
While disposing of the case, the court observed that the practice of retracting on charges by prosecutrix was rampant earlier also when there was no provision of Section 164-A CrPC. “State legislature in its supreme wisdom amended the Code of Criminal Procedure by inserting Section 164-A to curb the menace of perjury by the witnesses. It made a provision for recording the statements of material witnesses by a magistrate on oath during investigation so that the cases do not fail in view of retraction by the witnesses during the trial”, police said quoting the judge.
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