Delhi Police on Monday arrested a Deputy Director of the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department and his wife for the alleged rape of a minor girl.
The accused officer has been identified as Premoday Khakha and his wife has been named as Seema Rani. The officer has been suspended by the Delhi government at the order of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken cognizance of the case and has asked for a report from the Delhi Police Commissioner and Secretary of WCD Department within five days. The NCW has also formed a four-member team to look into the case. The team reached the hospital to meet the girl but was not allowed and alleged a "cover-up" at the scene. Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) Chairperson Swati Maliwal also sat on a dharna when she was not allowed to meet the girl.
The girl is a class 12 student and the case came to light during counselling after she started suffering from anxiety and panic attacks after the alleged rape incidents.
What we know about the case?
Premoday Khakha is accused of raping the girl several times and his wife Seema is accused of terminating her pregnancy.
Khakha allegedly raped the girl several times during November 2020-January 2021 and, when the girl became pregnant, she informed Seema who terminated her pregnancy through medicines, reported PTI, citing police.
The minor was living with the accused, who are her family friends, at the time of the alleged incident after her father died in October 2020. She reportedly called Khakha 'mama'. He was her local guardian.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) North District Sagar Singh Kalsi said the two families had known each other for around 20 years and regularly attended religious gatherings together. He further said the girl is hospitalised and stable and recorded her statement with a magistrate after a go-ahead from the doctor.
As for the wife's arrest, Kalsi said, "She is accomplice under 120 B [of Indian Penal Code, being party to criminal conspiracy]. She was aware of the incident but she did not report it...She has been effective in getting abortion [of the girl]."
As for the girl, Kalsi sais, "She was in a state of turmoil, according to the doctors. She was agitated. She was perplexed. Lately in July and August, she has had panic attacks and shocks, following which her mother brought her to the hospital where she was admitted. During counselling and treatment at the hospital, these facts came out which amounted to the criminal offence."
National Commission for Women takes cognisance
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken cognizance of the case and has sought a report from the Delhi Police Commissioner and Secretary of WCD Department within five days.
The NCW has also formed a four-member team to look into the incident. The team visited the hospital where the girl is admitted and alleged a "cover-up" when members were not allowed to meet the girl.
NCW team member Mamta Kumari told ANI, "We came here after forming a committee for enquiry into this case. We went to the office of the Police Commissioner but he did not meet us there. We were told that he is out for some work. We tried to meet the IO but we were told that he has gone to Court. When we came here to meet the victim, we are being told that her mother does not want to meet us...They are doing this to cover this up."
In a later tweet, however, the NCW said that it respects the girl's family's request of privacy.
Similarly, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) Chairperson Swati Maliwal reached the hospital but was not allowed to meet the girl. She held a sit-in protest after she was not allowed to meet the girl. In a tweet, Maliwal said that NCW Chairperson met the girl but she was not allowed to meet her. She criticised "dual standards".
In a separate statement, NCW Chairperson Rekha Sharma questioned the role of Delhi government and said she is hearing that some people were trying to protect the accused.
Sharma told ANI, ""NCW has taken suo-moto cognisance and we will conduct an inquiry into the case. The accused and his wife had kept the girl with them illegally. When an employee of the Women & Child Development Dept of Delhi govt who was also working with DCW doing all this, were the Delhi govt & DCW doing? We are hearing that some people from the government were trying to save the accused officer."
