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| Twist to Chatroo minor rape, death case: Crime Branch takes over probe | | | Atul Sharma
Early Times Report
Jammu, Aug 29: The death of a 14-year-old tribal girl in Kishtwar's Chatroo area has taken a fresh turn, with the investigation now handed over to the Crime Branch even as the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court prepares to hear a petition on Monday demanding an independent probe into the case.
The transfer of the case comes after days of mounting pressure from locals, who took to the streets demanding the Kishtwar Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) be replaced by the Crime Branch to ensure a fair and transparent investigation. Reports indicate the probe will now be led by SSP Sanjay Kumar Parihar and DySP Javed Iqbal Chowdhary.
The petition moved before the High Court seeks a thorough, independent investigation into the entire chain of events leading up to and following the minor's death on August 20 — and paints a disturbing picture of an alleged cover-up.
According to the petition, a Panchayat was convened once the minor's pregnancy came to light. It alleges that the girl's father was pressured to compromise, offered money to stay silent, and ultimately forced to affix his thumb impression on a blank sheet of paper. The petitioners have demanded that everyone present at that Panchayat be identified and investigated.
Police have already arrested six people in connection with the case, with the school principal named as the main accused, alongside a nurse and a daily- Police have already arrested six people in connection with the case, with the school principal named as the main accused.
A nurse and a daily-wage sanitation worker attached to Kishtwar District Hospital have also been arrested.
The government has suspended the accused teacher, while the daily-wage worker has been dismissed from service.
The petition demands scrutiny of the minor's entire medical trail: her examination at the Primary Health Centre in Chatroo, an ultrasound conducted in Kishtwar, treatment at the district hospital, and her eventual transfer to Doda. The girl reportedly gave birth to a stillborn child before being shifted to Punjab, where she died.
The petitioners want investigators to probe alleged attempts to terminate the pregnancy, the procurement and administration of medicines, those who ferried the minor between locations, and the care she received at each facility along the way.
To prevent any tampering, the petition calls for the preservation and forensic examination of hospital records, ultrasound reports, medical prescriptions, ambulance logs, GPS and location data, CCTV footage, call detail records, electronic communications, financial records, and DNA evidence.
In one of the most troubling threads raised in the petition, it questions how the minor came to be recorded as the "wife" of a 13-year-old boy in hospital records — and who supplied that information. The petition also seeks accountability for any administrative or institutional lapses, particularly in how the school and local authorities responded once the girl's pregnancy first became known. |
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