The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Wednesday summoned Central Bureau of Investigation Director Alok Kumar Verma to be present in court at the next hearing in the Kotkhai rape and murder case on April 18, ANI reported.
Six men had allegedly raped and murdered a 16-year-old schoolgirl in Shimla district’s Kotkhai town on July 4, 2017. The police had arrested the accused – four Nepalese persons and two men from Uttarakhand – after 10 days of the crime.
On January 10, the CBI had filed an affidavit and a fresh status report on the case, in which it had accused the government of Himachal Pradesh of not cooperating in the investigation.
Suraj Singh, one of the Nepalese, was found dead in custody at the Kotkhai Police Station on July 18. In December, the CBI had cleared one of the other accused of killing Singh in jail.
The 16-year-old’s rape and murder had triggered violent protests in Himachal Pradesh. Agitators had thrown stones, burnt vehicles and attempted to set the Kotkhai Police Station ablaze before attacking police officers. Shops, schools and business establishments were shut in protest against the gangrape and the custodial death.
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