Man acquitted in gangrape case

A Delhi court has acquitted a man in a gangrape and trafficking case, observing that the complainant's version was unreliable and untrustworthy.
"Prosecution has also failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt that accused Rakesh Kumar had trafficked the prosecutrix for the purpose of exploitation," Additional Sessions Judge Shail Jain said.
"I am of the opinion that prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt that Kumar had forcibly committed gangrape upon prosecutrix after administering cold drink laced with some intoxicating substance or had threatened her with dire consequences. Version of the prosecutrix is unreliable and untrustworthy, benefit of which is to be given to the accused," the judge said.

During the trial, Kumar's counsel Karan Pal Singh told the court that there was not even a single averment of exploitation done by the accused against the woman.
The court took note of the counsel's submission that the FIR was lodged after a delay of five to six months.
"In her statement, the prosecutrix had stated that she had come to Delhi with Bal Chand and Prem Chand for employment with the consent of her parents, hence it cannot be said that she came to Delhi under pressure," Singh had argued.

According to the prosecution, the woman said that she was brought to Delhi by Prem Chand and Bal Chand who "sold" her to Kumar's job placement agency for Rs 30,000.

She had alleged she was gangraped repeatedly by Kumar, a resident of west Delhi, and his three friends in March-April 2013 after she was drugged. While Prem Chand died during the trial, Bal Chand was earlier acquitted and the third co-accused Vinod Tyagi was declared proclaimed offender.
The complainant said that the accused threatened her with dire consequences if she revealed the instance to anyone.
Later, she went to Chandigarh and was employed as a maid. She escaped from there and came to Delhi and filed the complaint at Moti Nagar Police Station in west Delhi on September 1, 2013.