The accused, who’s in jail along with three others, said he and the 20-year-old woman were “friends”.
Claiming that he and the three other accused are being framed in the case, the main accused in the alleged gang rape and torture of a young Dalit woman in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras has written to the Uttar Pradesh police, seeking “justice” for the four men. He also accused the victim’s family of torturing her.
The development comes amid police claims that there is evidence that the victim’s family knew one of the accused.
One of the four accused, Sandeep Thakur, has written to the Uttar Pradesh police from jail. The accused, who’s in jail along with three others, said he and the 20-year-old woman were “friends”. “Apart from meeting, we used to speak on the phone once in a while,” Sandeep Thakur said, in the handwritten Hindi letter. The letter also has thumb impressions of other accused.
Call records reveal that the woman’s brother had was in touch with Sandeep Thakur, the police had claimed earlier. The police said that some 104 calls were made between the brother and Sandeep Thakur from October last year to March.
The accused also alleged in his letter that the victim’s family did not like their friendship.
“On the day of the incident, I had gone to meet her in the fields that day where her mother and brothers were also present. I returned home after being asked by her to do so. I then started feeding cattle,” he wrote.
“I later got to know from the villagers that her mother and brothers beat her up over our friendship, injuring her badly. I have never beaten her or done anything wrong with her. Her mother and brothers falsely accused me and three others and sent us to jail. We’re all innocent. Request you to please investigate and get us justice,” he added.
A senior officer of Aligarh Jail, where the accused are, confirmed that the accused sent a letter to the Hathras police. “They sent their letter to the Hathras Superintendent of Police yesterday evening. As per law, we have sent to the Hathras Superintendent of Police… They have put forth their version. Now the investigating agencies will see,” the Senior Superintendent of Aligarh Jail, Alok Singh told reporters.
However, the victim’s father has denied all the allegations made by Sandeep Thakur. “I have lost my daughter. Now they are trying to malign us. We are not afraid. The allegations are totally false. We don’t want any compensation or any money. We want justice,” the father told NDTV.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi condemned the new narrative that has emerged in this case. “Creating a narrative that defames a woman’s character and holding her somehow responsible for crimes committed against her is revolting and regressive,” Gandhi tweeted, stressing that woman deserves “justice not slander”.
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