The Supreme Court on Thursday asked Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan to apologise for his allegedly saying the July 29 Bulandshahr gangrape cases were a “political conspiracy”. “It is a democratic principle that a public servant should not comment on the investigation of crime if it is not related to him,” said the bench. The top court asked the state government to ensure that the minor survivor is given admission in a Central school and to take care of the costs of her education, reported The New Indian Express.
The 15-year-old girl had approached the Supreme Court in August, seeking a First information Report against Khan. After the incident had come to light, Khan had reportedly said, “We need to investigate whether this is a political conspiracy by opponents who want to defame the government.” The girl had also appealed to the apex court to provide security and rehabilitation to her family.
On November 8, the court had asked Khan to make clear his stand on his alleged remark and asked him to file an affidavit by November 17. Advocate Kapil Sibal, who represented the Samajwadi Party leader, said the minister’s statement did not influence the investigations.
The Central Bureau of Investigation had registered a case on August 18 and sent a team of forensic experts and an officer to the crime scene, reported The New Indian Express.
The incident took place when the family was travelling to Shahjahanpur to attend a relative’s funeral. A gang of highway robbers surrounded their car around midnight and forced all of them into a nearby field. There, they gangraped the girl and her mother. The assailants carried out the attack barely 100 metres from a police post. However, the police allegedly took hours to reach the spot.
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