A former Muzaffarpur shelter home inmate was allegedly gang-raped by four men in a moving car in West Champaran district of Bihar. The horrific incident took place on Friday, September 13, when the girl was on her way to her sister-in-law’s place on foot.
The survivor claimed that the four men forcibly dragged her inside their vehicle, raped her and then dumped her in her locality.
The 18-year-old survivor who was shifted to Mokama shelter home from Muzaffarpur Balika Grih before she was reunited with her family, has successfully identified the four accused. She claimed that all the four men had their faces covered with masks, but she could remove the masks and identify them. The woman also said that the four belong to the same family, and two of them are brothers.
The victim filed a complaint on Saturday, September 14, after she reached the Bettiah town police station and narrated the horrendous incident. Bettiah town station house officer Shashi Bhushan Thakur said that the survivor was admitted to a government medical college in Bettiah. A medical examination was conducted under the supervision of a group of doctors. It will be confirmed whether she was raped only after getting the medical examination report, he said.
An FIR was registered against the four accused: Akash Kumar, Raj Kumar, Dinanath Kumar and Kundar Kumar, all residents of Ilam Ram Chowk in Bettiah. Shockingly, the cops at the police station transferred the victim to the hospital for medical examination 24 hours after she filed the complaint.
“Action against the accused would be taken after the receipt of the medical report, which is awaited,” Bettiah women’s police station SHO Poonam Kumari said. She also said that the victim’s garments were preserved for forensic tests.
The Muzzafarpur shelter home atrocities made headlines in 2018 after a social audit, submitted by Tata Institute of Social Sciences to the state’s social welfare department found that more than 30 girls were allegedly raped and abused at the shelter home run by Brajesh Thakur, the chief of a state-funded NGO.
All inmates were allegedly drugged and raped, according to law enforcement agencies. The Central Bureau of Investigation in its chargesheet filed in December 2018, alleged that the main accused, Brajesh Thakur, had forced the girls to dance to vulgar songs and have sexual intercourse with guests.
A complaint was registered against 11 people on May 31, 2019, including Thakur, who is currently lodged in a high-security prison in Punjab.
Last week, the Supreme Court ordered the Bihar Government to hand over all the remaining girls of the Balika Grih to their families and also demanded financial compensation for them and their families.
The Logical Indian Take
One cannot begin to fathom the pain and disappointment of the young girl who was violated, not once but twice. What’s even more difficult to fathom is the gross negligence of the Bihar police, the failure of the local administration to prevent exploitation of women and the government’s inability to protect the most vulnerable.
The lawlessness in Bihar, with this incident, has crossed the limits of depravity and The Logical Indian asks, who will take care of the safety and security of our women and children because the Bihar police are clearly failing at their job.
Also Read: TN: Surprise Shelter Home Visit Unravels Truth Of Rampant Sexual Abuse
