Probe Burari cops, DCW chief tells CP

New Delhi: Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal on Wednesday shot off a letter to top cop Alok Verma, alleging delayed police action in the Burari rape case in which the 14-year-old victim eventually died. She also demanded a probe into the conduct of officers of the Burari police station who handled the case.
In the letter, Maliwal cited a recent FIR filed against her by Burari SHO for allegedly revealing the identity of the rape victim.She demanded that the rape case be transferred to a special investigation team (SIT).
“In May 2016, a 14-year-old girl was kidnapped by someone who had previously allegedly raped her in December 2015. She was then allegedly confined to a room for 12 days, raped repeatedly by her kidnapper and on the last day, was forcefully administered acid, which slowly destroyed her internal organs, eventually leading to her death,” Maliwal said in her letter. “...In her statements, the victim alleged that the local police forced her to change her statements under Section 164 of CrPC before court and were hand in glove with the accused.”
Maliwal further stated that in order to investigate the matter, the commission initiated civil court proceedings under Section 10 of the DCW Act, 1994, and issued a notice to the SHO Burari. The DCP (north) was asked to provide immediate police protection to the victim and her family. “It was only after the commission’s notice that the prime accused was arrested by Delhi Police on July 23. Therefore a delay of more than 22 days was made in arresting the accused. Further, despite the medical reports of the victim reflecting corrosive poisoning, no steps were taken to add poisoning/attempt to murder charges to the FIR,” the letter alleged.
According to Maliwal, the family of the victim has not been provided police protection to date and it has been living in constant fear of being attacked by the accused.
She claimed that on July 26, the local police “selectively leaked to media that an FIR has been registered against the DCW chairperson for naming the 14-year-old rape victim”. “Despite repeated requests, I was not given a copy of the FIR...I finally received a copy of the FIR on Wednesday after applying for the same in the court, which held it to be my fundamental right. A plain reading of the FIR shows that it is baseless and completely untenable in law,” Maliwal added.
She claimed she had never disclosed the “minor’s name” and followed all statutory requirements while dealing with the matter. Maliwal demanded that the investigation into the “illegal and frivolous” FIR against her be stayed and an inquiry be ordered into the brazen attempt by the Burari police station to “intimidate a statutory body with the intention of preventing a fair investigation into the grievous case of the 14-year-old deceased”.