Haryana: Another minor raped; govt constitutes committee

In yet another incident of sexual assault on women in Haryana, a minor girl has allegedly been raped in Jagadhri town of Yamunanagar district, compelling the rattled state government to constitute a committee.

The 16-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a youth known to her in Bhadeli village of the district on Tuesday evening. However, the matter was reported on Wednesday.

The youth took her in his car on Tuesday evening and on the way one more person joined him. "The two accused then took the girl to nearby fields and raped her," said Mitesh Jain, Superintendent of Police Yamunanagar.

Both the accused were arrested on Thursday.

"The complaint was lodged by the victim's family and the two accused were arrested on Thursday," said Jain.

The Haryana government on Thursday formed a three-member committee at district level to investigate, monitor and ensure speedy prosecution of such crimes.

This incident comes in series of such horrific incidents against women during the past one month.

During the past three days, two minor girls were allegedly raped in Rohtak district while a mentally challenged woman was sexually assaulted in Jind.

Prior to these incidents, a 19-year-old newly married woman of Banwasa village in Sonepat's Gohana was gangraped. 

Earlier, a rape incident took place in Hisar on September 9, where a Dalit teenage girl was gangraped in Dabra village.

After the Dabra gangrape incident, a married woman was gangraped in a Jind village, a teenage girl was gangraped by some youths in Gohana in Sonepat district while another teenage girl was raped in a moving jeep in Bhiwani district.

Stung by a series of rape cases being reported in the state, the government on Thursday unfolded its three-pronged strategy, which includes regular monitoring of cases of crime against women at district level, setting up of fast track courts and intensifying patrolling by police.

Announcing this, Haryana Chief Secretary PK Chaudhary said that he had held a meeting with senior officials of the home department including the director general of police, and the CID to frame recommendations to handle the cases of crime against women.

Sharing the details of recommendations, Chaudhery said, "At district level, the monitoring of investigation and prosecution will be done for which the instruction are being issued. The committee consisting of district magistrate, SP and district attorney would regularly, on fortnightly basis, monitor investigation and prosecution of all cases of crime against women."

The state government would also request the Punjab and Haryana high court to put cases of heinous crimes against women to fast track courts for their speedy disposal, he said.

"We will be requesting shortly to the (Punjab and Haryana) high court to entrust cases of heinous crime against women to fast track courts so those who are apprehended are brought to justice quickly," he said.

Chaudhery further said the police has been instructed to intensify their patrolling across the state and crackdown on criminals who indulge in crime against women.

Earlier, he said the strategy was developed on the directions of Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

"The chief minister asked me to go into the detail and give recommendation to tackle the situation by which he was extremely unhappy and disturbed. He has given instructions that criminals involved in such heinous crimes should be dealt with sternly," he said.