Justice 11 years later, but scars remain

January 13, 2012

CHIKKABASAVAIAH

Mysore, January 13: When victim of acid attack Dr Mahalaxmi lay on the bed of a private hospital on January 11, 2001, her skin was seething and folding into the facial muscles.

A few of her sensory organs had already died. Yet, the police were meandering over the geographical ‘area’ of crime and had not registered the case since they couldn’t arrive at a decision on that.

Exactly eleven years later, a landmark judgement by the Karnataka High Court, government medical practitioner Dr Mahalaxmi’s face has never been brighter, and her lustrous mane bearing a faint remainder of what a beauty she was, before a man turned into beast and ruined it for her.

Her tormentor Chikkabasavaiah, a man close to his 60s now, has been awarded three years rigorous imprisonment and Rs 20,000 penalty.

This came at the end of eleven years of ordeal -- five years in the lower court and six years at the High Court.

The Lower court had acquitted Chikkabasavaiah of the crime, giving him the benefit of doubt.

Happy with the verdict

Speaking with media, a visibly elated Dr Mahalaxmi said ‘justice is finally done’ and that she was ‘happy with the judgement of the High Court.’

Dr Mahalaxmi’s life went on a roller-coaster ride after Chikkabasavaiah, her former landlord, threw acid on her. She was just 26 then.

“I vacated the portion of the house I rented from Chikkabasavaiah at JP Nagar, because he would come and sit in my clinic, for no rhyme or reason. He was clearly making advances to me and I was worried,” she recollects.

After vacating the premises, she asked her ex-landlord to return the money she had given him as deposit. She had to approach police against Chikkabasavaiah for refusing to refund the money.

The inevitable happened. Her former landlord emptied a bottle of acid which seared her face. “Being a doctor, I instantly knew he had caused some harm,” she says.

Long battle

A young boy barely five years old, his mother and an auto driver took her to an hospital. She lost an eye and a ear, but prepared herself for a long battle.

This graduate from Mysore Medical College took to studies, kept date with follow-up surgeries, and took up a government job for social security and moved the courts.

“A few organisations kept off my case, but the State government and the media helped a great deal. The State even hired a prosecutor to fight my case. I just kept faith and kept at it. I have always believed justice can be delayed, but never denied. I feel women should develop the tenacity to fight the long legal battle for their own sake and never give up,” she says.

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Agencies
January 9,2020

Bareilly, Jan 9: In a bizarre development, a woman has been arrested for inflicting 101 cuts on her sister-in-law in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly district, the police said on Thursday.

The woman was practicing exorcism to cure her father who had been ailing for some time.

The woman, Moni, was helped by her husband Mooli and brother Raju in the act, which happened on Tuesday.

The sister-in-law Renu who suffered the cuts, was given 300 stitches on her face and other parts of the body by the doctors.

Renu has been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where her condition is said to be serious.

Moni, 30, has been sent to jail while Mooli and Raju are absconding.

Baradari police station officer inspector Naresh Tyagi said that a complaint had been filed by Renu's brother under section 307 (attempt to murder) of IPC.

"We will record Renu's statements in a day or two once she is stable and in a condition to talk to us. We have sent Moni to jail," the inspector said.

Renu, a resident of Ganghora village in Bareilly, was married to Sanjeev around eight years ago.

Her father-in-law, Jagdish, fell ill a few months ago.

"Accused Moni, who practices exorcism, decided to cure her father by initiating the act. Going by superstitious beliefs, they inflicted as many as 101 cuts on Renu's face and body. It cannot be ruled out that they wanted to sacrifice her to complete the act," police inspector said.

On Tuesday night, the accused had locked Renu's husband and mother-in-law in another room when they tried to stop them from making her a scapegoat.

When the accused trio started inflicting cuts on Renu, she struggled to get out of their clutches and somehow managed to escape from the house.

She had run a short distance when she collapsed and became unconscious. A police constable on patrol reportedly spotted her and she was taken to a district hospital. Once regaining her consciousness, she narrated her ordeal to the police who then informed her parents.

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News Network
June 27,2020

Guna (MP),  Jun 27: A 20-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly eloping with her minor partner and "marrying" her at Guna town in Madhya Pradesh, police said on Saturday.

The matter came to light, when a resident of Budhe Balaji area approached the Kotwali police station on Monday with a complaint that his 17-year-old daughter had gone missing, additional superintendent of police T S Baghel said.

On investigation, it was found that a relative from a village Shivpuri district, who was living with the family, was also missing, he said.

A team was sent to the village and the duo was caught on Friday, the official said, adding that the woman had married the minor, who claimed that she had eloped of her own volition.

The woman was arrested under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, while the minor was sent back to her family after counselling.

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Agencies
July 2,2020

Tuticorin, Jul 2: The Crime Branch-Crime Investigation Department (CBCID) of Tamil Nadu police have arrested five policemen working in Sathankulam police station in Tuticorin district for the murder of P. Jeyaraj and his son J. Bennicks, officials said.

The CBCID also altered the first information report (FIR) registered on the death of Jeyaraj and Bennicks as a murder case from the earlier charge of suspicious death.

The five arrested policemen are: Inspector Sridhar, Sub-Inspectors Balakrishnan and Raghu Ganesh, Head Constable Murugan and Constable Muthuraj.

Ganesh was remanded to custody till July 16 on late Wednesday.

According to Inspector General CBCID Shankar, 12 teams have been formed to carry out the probe into the custodial death of father and son Jeyaraj and Bennicks.

Jeyaraj and Bennicks had been booked for not closing their mobile shop in time on June 19 by the Sathankulam police. They were sent to judicial custody and lodged in Kovilpatti jail on June 21.

Jeyaraj died on June 22 night and Bennicks on June 23 morning in judicial custody, allegedly due to the police torture.

The Madras High Court Bench in Madurai which took up the case suo moto had said there was prima facie evidence to register a murder case against the Sathankulam police officials.

The Kovilpatti Judicial Magistrate M.S. Bharathidasan who was asked to inquire into the case of brutal torture of AJeyaraj and his son Bennicks by the Sathankulam police on June 19 and their subsequent deaths had submitted is report to the High Court.

A woman police constable Revathy, at the Sathankulam police station, in her deposition before Bharathidasan had said that Jeyaraj and Bennicks were beaten with batons throughout the June 19 night.

According to Bharathidasan's report, Revathy also said the victims' blood stains were on the batons of the station police officials and on tables.

She said the batons and the tables should be secured so that the evidence is not lost, the report stated.

Expressing fear that she may be targeted later, Revathy was initially reluctant to sign a printout of her statement but later on being assured of her safety she signed the document.

The court also transferred the probe into the deaths of Jeyaraj and Bennicks to the Crime Branch Crime Investigation Department (CBCID) to gather and protect the evidence till the case is handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The High Court has initiated criminal contempt cases against three police officials - Additional Superintendent of Police Kumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police Prathapan and constable Maharajan - for their behaviour at the Sathankulam police station in front of Magistrate Bharathidasan.

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