Please share with us the case that has been closest to your heart.
There are many cases which have deeply engaged me. But one case has stuck in my mind. It was about a very unfortunate adivasi woman, who was sexually assaulted and violated, in a police station. The question was, whether the woman as in the ordinary course should move a local magistrate to get the (guilty) policeman and others who shielded them prosecuted, or to pursue other efficacious remedies.
There was an organisation working for free legal aid in Rajpipla in Gujarat (where the incident happened). The head of this organisation called me up and asked my advice on what best needed to be done in this case. I advised him that we should file a petition in the Supreme Court.
We filed a petition in the Supreme Court. We worked hard on the case and the Supreme Court entertained it. Some of the issues I wanted to raise were on the accountability of custodial institutions like the police, and armed forces, particularly in the context of violation of women’s dignity and liberty.
The question which kept bothering me was that if a woman like her is not protected, then what is access to Justice? After a while, the Supreme Court in this case appointed a commission and the commission submitted a report. Not only was the policeman responsible for doing this dastardly act prosecuted, but so also were other officers who had tried to suppress this issue. Many people were sent to jail.
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Denne historien er fra January 25, 2021-utgaven av India Legal.
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