Uttar Pradesh police on Monday said that the Unnao rape case survivor was injured in an accident, and as per their preliminary investigations the act did not seem deliberate. The survivor and her lawyer were critically injured when an over-speeding truck rammed into their car in Rae Bareli on Sunday. Two of the girl’s aunts were killed in the accident.
The survivor’s family has alleged that the ‘accident’ had been planned by BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who the girl had accused of raping her in 2017.
Uttar Pradesh director General of police OP Singh said that they would conduct a fair probe. “We’ll conduct a fair and free probe. Primary probe suggests it was purely an accident due to an overspeeding truck. Truck driver and owner have been arrested,” Singh told news agency ANI.
The Unnao rape case is being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the girl had been given police protection. On being asked why there was no security personnel travelling with her when the accident occured on Sunday, the police said that the girl herself had requested the guard deputed to not accompany her due to lack of space. The UP DGP maintained that there had been no negligence in the survivor’s security.
The survivor’s mother told reporters that she believes Sengar is involved in the accident. “Sengar is in jail but his men aren’t. He and his men were threatening us,” her mother was quoting as saying by NDTV. Police said that they are also probing this angle and would also be willing to hand over the case to CBI if the family demanded.
“We are investigating if numbers of driver, cleaner & owner (of the truck) match with known numbers of Kuldeep Singh Sengar (accused in Unnao rape case) and his associates,” said Rajeev Krishna, ADG-Law and Order, Lucknow Zone. When questioned about the blackened number plate of the truck, the ADG said the truck owner had resorted to the act in order to avoid the eyes of the finance company with which he has pending dues.
The statements by the police have come at a time when questions are being raised of the BJP over its reluctance to act against the errant MLA. The Opposition has also latched on to the allegations by the victim’s kin to suggest that the act was a conspiracy that deserved a thorough probe by a central agency.
In 2017, the mother had alleged that Sengar, a four-time MLA who represents Bangermau in the UP assembly, raped her daughter at his residence. The case came to light when the survivor attempted self-immolation outside Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s residence seeking justice.