Delhi court summons 5 gang-rape case accused on Jan 7

A Delhi [ Images ] court on Saturday took cognisance of the charge sheet filed by police in the case of December 16 gang-rape of a 23-year-old paramedical student who died in a Singapore hospital 13 days later.

Metropolitan Magistrate Namrita Aggarwal took cognisance of the charge-sheet saying a case of various offences, including those of murder and gang-rape are made out against the accused.

"I have perused the charge sheet and other documents. Prima facie offence under sections, 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 376 (2)(g) (gangrape), 377 (unnatural offences), 395 (dacoity), 396 (murder in dacoity), 394 (hurting in dacoity), 201 (destruction of evidence), 120B (conspiracy), 34 (common intention) and 412 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) of the IPC is made out against all the accused," said the metropolitan magistrate.

"I take cognisance of the charge sheet and issue summons /production warrants to all the five accused for January 7," she added.

The court asked Delhi police to produce all the five accused, Ram Singh, Mukesh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma and Akshay Thakur on January 7.

Delhi Police on January 3 had filed a charge sheet in the case under several sections of Indian Penal Code for various offences, including that of murder, which prescribes death penalty as the maximum punishment.

The court took cognisance of the charge sheet after hearing the submissions of Additional Public prosecutor Rajiv Mohan.

After filing the e-challan, the prosecutor told the court that the statement of complainant (paramedic's male friend) and the deceased victim revealed commission of offences under all the sections mentioned in the charge sheet.

"We are at the stage of taking cognisance and only prima facie commission of offences is required to be proved," he said adding the statement of the girl would be considered as dying declaration in the case.

"We are relying on the statements of the victim and her male friend recorded under section 164 of the CrPC," he said.

He also submitted that the statements of the victims clearly spell out the commission of all offences.

Regarding offences of murder and murder during dacoity under the IPC, the prosecutor said the victim's death summary, received from Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore, revealed the cause of death as septicemia and multiple organ failure.

"The death summary of the Singapore hospital is corroborated with the report of the Safdarjung hospital where the victim was hospitalised for 11 days.

"That report also talks of multiple organ failure due to multiple organ injuries," he said.

The prosecution also said the accused were more than five in number and the articles they robbed from the victim have also been recovered from them which sufficiently constitutes offence under sections 396 (murder during dacoity) and 302 (murder) of the IPC.

Referring to the DNA report, annexed with the charge sheet, the prosecutor said the blood of the victim tallied with the blood stains on clothes of all the accused and Central Forensic Science Laboratory has also confirmed the same.

On prosecution's plea that the documents containing the name and identity of the victim be kept in sealed cover to protect her identity, the magistrate directed that the complete case file comprising the charge sheet, e-challan and FIR be kept under the court's seal.

On aspects of booking the accused for the offences of dacoity, committing murder and causing hurt during dacoity, and attempt to murder, the prosecutor said on the basis of the statements of both the victim and those of connecting witnesses, the DNA report and the death summary from the Singapore hospital and Safdarjung Hospital here, these offences are made out.

Regarding section 412 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) of the IPC, he said the police has also recovered articles robbed from the victims.

He said they have also booked the accused for destroying the evidence as they have also received the burnt clothes of the male friend and the deceased at the instance of accused and the blood stains on those burnt pieces of clothes have tallied with the blood samples of the victims.

The prosecutor also told the court that the charge sheet names 80 witnesses and contains a list of 12 evidence gathered against the accused.

The victim, a paramedical student, was brutally raped and assaulted in a moving bus here on the night of December 16, 2012 and died of her injuries on December 29, 2012 in multi-speciality Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.

Her male friend, who was accompanying her that day, was also assaulted by the accused and both of them were thrown out of the bus after they were stripped and robbed.

The culprits are charge-sheeted.

Now let us see how soon the judgement is passed. Then how soon, their death penalty is confirmed by the High Court.

And later how soon their mercy petition to the President is disposed.

However, there being no Muslims in the gang, we can hope the government will not play any vote bank politics and dispose their petitions expeditiously.

I am sure, the whole nation is watching how soon they will be hanged.