Hyderabad Police Grills Only Major Accused Malik on Day One of Custody

Hyderabad: The Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) has permitted the Hyderabad police to take four minors into their custody for four days in the Jubilee Hills gangrape case. Earlier, the Hyderabad police appealed to the board for an exemption to try the accused children in conflict with law (CCL) as adults. 

The Juvenile Justice court has allowed the police to question the accused, who are in the custody of the Juvenile Justice Board. The police officials would record the statements of the accused in the presence of a Judge and will visit the JJB in civil clothes. 

Out of the six accused apprehended in the 17-year-old minor girl’s gangrape case on May 28, only one Saduddin Malik is an adult and the remaining are aged 16-17. While the sixth minor accused, a son of MIM MLA, who has been charged only with molestation is one month short of turning 18. 

Among the four minors charged with sexual assault include son of a leader of ruling TRS. The leader is also the chairman of a government-run body. Two others are said to be sons of corporators in GHMC and Sangareddy while the other accused are also from affluent and politically influential families. 

The TRS working president and IT Minister KT Rama Rao has welcomed the move of the Telangana police to appeal before the Juvenile Justice Board for an exemption. 

“If you are adult enough to commit a crime as heinous as rape, one must also be punished as an adult and not as a juvenile,” KTR tweeted. 

I welcome & support the stand of @TelanganaCOPs

If you are adult enough to commit a crime as heinous as rape, one must also be punished as an adult
& not as a juvenile https://t.co/Pp3ALBzbfx

— KTR (@KTRTRS) June 9, 2022

Meanwhile, Hyderabad police on Thursday began questioning the only major accused Saduddin Malik in the Jubilee Hills gangrape case after taking him into custody from Chanchalguda Central Prison. The Nampally Criminal Court on Wednesday had sent Malik into 3-days police custody. The investigators are looking to gather more information from the 18-year-old accused in the May 28 gangrape case, which has triggered national outrage. 

“The scene of offence has to be reconstructed, more details related to the case are to be found and the custodial interrogation of the accused will lead them to certain conclusions in the case,” the prosecution had informed the Nampally Criminal court while seeking the custody of Malik.

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Meanwhile, police are planning to recreate the scene of crime with the help of Malik to build a strong case against the accused. Malik was arrested on June 3 while the juveniles were picked up subsequently from various places. 

The victim was allegedly gang-raped when she was retyurning home after attending a party in the Jubilee Hills area of Hyderabad on May 28. The police have identified the five culprits after analysing the CCTV footage and the statement of the victim. 

It is said the accused had offered to drop her home. However, they took her to an isolated place in a posh locality and she was sexually assaulted inside the parked car. The attackers took turns raping her while others stood outside the car guarding the attacker.

On the complaint of the girl's father, a police case was registered against five persons. The case has been registered under Sections 354 and 323 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 9 read with 10 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act.