The Panchkula District and Sessions Court will deliver the judgment on the interim bail application of the former Haryana director general of police (DGP) S.P.S. Rathore, on Friday. The order was reserved on Thursday by Additional District and Sessions Judge Sanjiv Jindal after hearing the arguments of Pankaj Bhardwaj, counsel for the victim’s family, and Abha Rathore, wife and counsel of the accused.
Mr. Rathore sought anticipatory bail in two FIRs that charge him with serious, non-bailable criminal crimes, with respect to harassment of the family of the budding tennis player who was molested by Mr. Rathore in 1990. She committed suicide three years later.
“They do not have even an iota of evidence to prove any allegations and are misusing the media to create pressure on the State government and police to register baseless FIRs,” said Abha Rathore in court. “It is shameful that the government is buckling under media pressure and promising help to one party, completely dismissing the role of the judiciary.”
She refuted allegations that Mr. Rathore used his position to falsely implicate the victim’s brother in car theft cases.
“Rathore never met or tried to influence investigating officers in the cases that were registered against the brother. Instead the boy’s grandfather, who was DSP in the CBI, interfered in the police inquiry.”
She challenged counsel (Pankaj Bhardwaj) to produce a single proof supporting the claims; she added that the family never approached police or court for help until 1997, when Mr. Rathore filed a case of defamation against them. Ms. Rathore said, “The Punjab and Haryana High Court and the Haryana government in their inquiry have absolved Mr. Rathore of all these charges, except Section 354 [molestation] of which he is convicted and is fighting in court.”
“This is a case of circumstantial evidence and criminal conspiracy. There is no question of misusing media, which came into the scene only after Dec. 21, after the court convicted Rathore and he walked out smiling,” said Mr. Bhardwaj.
He said that it was not his job to provide evidence to the court, “it is the job of the investigating agencies and I request the court to reject the bail application so that the agencies can question the accused.”
“Even today the State is working for Rathore,’ Mr. Bhardwaj said.
“Why is it that the public prosecutor has not found evidence in six days and wants the matter to be adjourned and taken up after three weeks? Also the police are yet to arrest or even question the man who is responsible for the molestation of a teenager and harassment of an entire family.”
While Ms. Rathore demanded that the role of Veena, the alleged second wife of the victim’s father, be probed both sides accused each other of having ‘shady backgrounds and facing corruption charges.’
In the end Ms. Rathore appealed to the court that Mr. Rathore was a 67-year-old man who had had serious surgeries and needed constant medical care.
He was willing to be present before any inquiry and cooperate in all investigations.
