2020 Hathras case: UP court acquits three accused and holds one guilty under section 304, rape charges dropped
The accused Sandeep has not been held guilty of rape. The court had pronounced him guilty under section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and SC-ST Act.
On Thursday, March 2, an SC-ST court in Uttar Pradesh acquitted three people accused in the Hathras case and held only one guilty. Out of the four accused, namely, Sandeep (20), Ravi (35), Luv Kush (23), and Ramu (26), the court held that Sandeep was guilty of the crime.
#JustIn | [Hathras Gang Rape and Murder Case]
UP Court acquits three accused, finds one guilty. Sentence to be pronounced shortly.#HathrasCase #Hathras pic.twitter.com/7DshuOaWmy— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) March 2, 2023
The quantum of punishment for Sandeep would be decided by the court post-lunch today. Sandeep was held guilty under IPC section 304 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and sections of the SC/ST act.
Significantly, in the Hathras case, where it was initially alleged that the girl was gang raped and then murdered, none of the four accused has been found guilty of the offence of rape by the Special Court. In fact, the court has reportedly invoked only IPC section 304 (punishment for culpable homicide but not murder) and the SC/ST Act against Sandeep, who has been held guilty by the court, while acquitting the other three.
None of the four accused have been found guilty of offence of Gangrape by the Special Court.#HathrasCase #Hathras— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) March 2, 2023
Soon after the court announced the verdict, the victim’s family, through their lawyer, expressed their disappointment with the court’s decision and said they intend to appeal to the Allahabad High Court.
Breaking: 3 of the 4 accused acquitted in the 2020 Hathras gangrape cum murder case where a Dalit girl was allegedly gangraped and murdered. One accused convicted. Quantum of punishment to be announced at 2 pm today. pic.twitter.com/0NsrnKUb0L— Piyush Rai (@Benarasiyaa) March 2, 2023
Meanwhile, the Hathras District Court will hear arguments against the sentence later today.
Hathras case
On September 14, 2020, the victim had gone to the field to collect fodder when she was attacked. The teenager was dragged by a dupatta around her neck, which probably caused the spinal injuries, to a field where she was allegedly raped.
The accused, who was nabbed, had tried to strangulate her to death as she resisted them, as per the victim’s family’s complaints. Though the claims of rape and brutality were included in the complaint, the forensic report stated that to signs of sexual assault were found on the victim’s body. Initial media reports and even the initial police complaint by the victim family have no mention of rape, gang rape or and caste atrocity angle.
The victim later succumbed to her injuries on September 29, 2020, at Safdurjung hospital in Delhi. The Hathras case was hyped by the opposition to stir up caste violence in the state. However, eventually, the politicisation fell apart. A detailed timeline of the media and political narratives around the case can be read here.
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