06-04-2005, 11:23 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>This is justice </b>
The Pioneer Edit Desk
In a country where the wheels of justice move at an exceedingly slow pace, the speed at which the two who had raped a German tourist in the outskirts of Jodhpur town, have been arrested and sentenced, will remain a shining example. The crime occurred on May 11. An auto rickshaw driver who had actually raped her, and his assistant, who was stopped while trying to do so by villagers who had rushed to the spot on hearing her shrieks, were both sentenced to life imprisonment on June 1.
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Much of the credit for such swift action should go to the Division Bench of the Rajasthan High Court at Jodhpur which took suo motu cognisance of the crime on the basis of media reports, and directed the Government on May 13 to investigate the case "as expeditiously as possible" and to complete the trial within one month. It also directed the authorities in Jodhpur to ensure the victim's security, and the Government of Rajasthan to bear all expenses of her stay in Jodhpur.
With the Division Bench taking the initiative, the police who traced out the culprits, who had fled the scene on the arrival of the villagers, rose to the occasion, as did the local trial court, which handed down the sentences in less than 21 days after the occurrence of the crime. The swiftness with which the sentences were announced and their justified severity is bound to have a salutary deterrent effect. Of particular significance is the fact that the auto rickshaw driver's assistant too was given life imprisonment. Though he could not actually rape the victim, the fact that he had assisted the driver in doing so and had tried to do so himself before the villagers arrived, made it clear that it was a pure accident that his crime was of lesser severity, which in turn made him an unlikely candidate for leniency.
If the Jodhpur rape case will be remembered for the remarkable speed at which justice was delivered, the criminal proceedings over the rape of another German tourist in Varanasi four years ago will remembered for the commendable tenacity with which the police went about its job. It not only arrested the two culprits but kept on trying to persuade the victim, who had left the country without testifying against them, to muster courage and return to give evidence. When she finally relented after nearly two years, it provided her with an air ticket, arranged for her visa, brought her from Delhi to Varanasi and arranged for her stay at the State Guest House under heavy guard. The culprits, who had earlier been released on bail, are now in prison again.
In the case of a foreign tourist, the enormity of rape as a crime is compounded by the severe damage it does to the country's image abroad. The way the Jodhpur and Varanasi cases have been dealt with, therefore, deserves special commendation. One fervently wishes that India's criminal justice system also delivered equally effectively in all cases of crime. Meanwhile, it remains a matter of shame that the man who raped a Swiss diplomat in Delhi some time ago, continues to be at large.
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The Pioneer Edit Desk
In a country where the wheels of justice move at an exceedingly slow pace, the speed at which the two who had raped a German tourist in the outskirts of Jodhpur town, have been arrested and sentenced, will remain a shining example. The crime occurred on May 11. An auto rickshaw driver who had actually raped her, and his assistant, who was stopped while trying to do so by villagers who had rushed to the spot on hearing her shrieks, were both sentenced to life imprisonment on June 1.
Â
Much of the credit for such swift action should go to the Division Bench of the Rajasthan High Court at Jodhpur which took suo motu cognisance of the crime on the basis of media reports, and directed the Government on May 13 to investigate the case "as expeditiously as possible" and to complete the trial within one month. It also directed the authorities in Jodhpur to ensure the victim's security, and the Government of Rajasthan to bear all expenses of her stay in Jodhpur.
With the Division Bench taking the initiative, the police who traced out the culprits, who had fled the scene on the arrival of the villagers, rose to the occasion, as did the local trial court, which handed down the sentences in less than 21 days after the occurrence of the crime. The swiftness with which the sentences were announced and their justified severity is bound to have a salutary deterrent effect. Of particular significance is the fact that the auto rickshaw driver's assistant too was given life imprisonment. Though he could not actually rape the victim, the fact that he had assisted the driver in doing so and had tried to do so himself before the villagers arrived, made it clear that it was a pure accident that his crime was of lesser severity, which in turn made him an unlikely candidate for leniency.
If the Jodhpur rape case will be remembered for the remarkable speed at which justice was delivered, the criminal proceedings over the rape of another German tourist in Varanasi four years ago will remembered for the commendable tenacity with which the police went about its job. It not only arrested the two culprits but kept on trying to persuade the victim, who had left the country without testifying against them, to muster courage and return to give evidence. When she finally relented after nearly two years, it provided her with an air ticket, arranged for her visa, brought her from Delhi to Varanasi and arranged for her stay at the State Guest House under heavy guard. The culprits, who had earlier been released on bail, are now in prison again.
In the case of a foreign tourist, the enormity of rape as a crime is compounded by the severe damage it does to the country's image abroad. The way the Jodhpur and Varanasi cases have been dealt with, therefore, deserves special commendation. One fervently wishes that India's criminal justice system also delivered equally effectively in all cases of crime. Meanwhile, it remains a matter of shame that the man who raped a Swiss diplomat in Delhi some time ago, continues to be at large.
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