Dec 16 gang rape FIR illegal, argues defence counsel

A lawyer representing two of the four convicts, sentenced to death in the Dec 16 gangrape case, Monday told the Delhi High Court that police had registered the FIR on the basis of a false story narrated by the victim's male friend against them about the incident.

Advocate M.L. Sharma, appearing for convicts Mukesh and Pawan Kumar Gupta, said that police had registered the FIR on the basis of the statement given by the victim's male friend but not by her.

A division bench of Justice Reva Khetrapal and Justice Pratibha Rani is holding a hearing on the confirmation of death sentence to the four convicts and their appeals.

The 23-year-old physiotherapy trainee was gang raped by six men in a moving bus exactly a year ago. She died in a Singapore hospital 13 days later.

Sharma contended that the present FIR and the subsequent proceedings against his clients were illegal. He also said that prosecution had failed to videograph the woman's statement in the hospital.

Police had not given any justification as to why the woman's complaint was not registered, he said.

He further questioned the medical evidence that the bite marks on the victim's body were of two accused out of six, alleging that police had framed the four convicts to shield four other people.

The lawyer will continue his arguments Tuesday.