Molester ex-DGP ignores Centre's show-cause notice

The Centre on Tuesday sent a fresh reminder to former Haryana director general of police S P S Rathore, convicted in the Ruchika molestation case, asking it to respond to a show-cause notice on why his pension should not be reduced and his police medal not withdrawn for allegedly abusing power.

The reminder was sent as Rathore has failed to respond to the notice sent to him on December 26, 2009 by the stipulated January 15 deadline, official sources said. The notice, stating his conduct was allegedly unbecoming of a police officer, was served on Rathore, the sources said.

The disgraced police officer has been sentenced by a court to six months jail for molesting 14-year-old Ruchika nearly two decades ago. With the light sentence awarded to him creating an uproar, the Central Police Awards Committee, headed by Union Home Secretary Gopal K Pillai, on January 4 had recommended the withdrawal of the police medal given to Rathore.

Rathore, a 1965-batch IPS officer who retired in 2002, was awarded the police medal for Meritorious service on August 15, 1985. Ruchika, a budding tennis player, was molested in 1990 by Rathore, the then inspector general of police.

She committed suicide three years later by consuming poison as the police official continued to harass her family. She was also expelled from school and false cases were slapped against her brother.