Rape Accused Waste Years In Jail Only To Be Proven Innocent

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday acquitted two men accused of rape in a 2001 case in Faridabad in Haryana. One had already served 10 years, while the other had spent 7 years in prison. They were accused in 2001 by a minor girl, their niece, that they had raped her in the presence of their family members, including mother, sister, wife and children. She alleged that they had picked her up earlier on the fateful night of August 22, took her to heir house and tied her limbs to a cot. Incidentally, the medical report, did not establish the rape charge.

After spending years in prison, an apex court bench comprising Justices N.V. Ramana and Mohan Shantanagoudar, admitted an appeal against their conviction following concurrent verdicts of the Faridabad trial court and the Punjab and Haryana high court. The SC bench held that the charges were not proved.

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The court did not refer to the issue of false rape charges against the two men, Jai Singh, who had spent 10 years in prison, serving out his sentence and Sham Singh, who spent 7 years. It ordered the immediate release of Sham Singh.

The medical report at that time also did not point to injury marks on her wrists or any evidence of semen. Originally, a Faridabad fast-track court acquitted the accused in 2003, but on an appeal in the Punjab and Haryana High Court by the girl, a fresh trial was directed. In 2011, the trial court convicted the accused which was upheld by the conviction.