Senior CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat along with Subhashini Ali and other party leaders on Thursday met the jailed law student, who has accused former Union minister Swami Chinmayanand of rape, at Shahjahanpur district jail and enquired about the incident. She accused the Uttar Pradesh government of “helping rapists” and said the fight for the jailed law student would be waged at every level.
The CPI(M) leader alleged that the ‘victim’ had been implicated in the case by the UP police on the directive of some senior politicians of the state and threatened to launch an agitation to ensure justice to the victim.
“The role of the SIT probing the case is suspicious. While the accused person is enjoying all benefits at the hospital, the victim is languishing in the jail. No rape case has been registered against the politician even after the charges made by the victim. What type of justice is this in the BJP rule,” Karat said, addressing media in Shahjahanpur.
“Registering a case under Section 376(C) against Swami Chinmayanand is an attempt to bail out the politician. The victim woman has also been booked in cases. Is the SIT exerting pressure on the woman and her family to withdraw her case against the politician?” the CPI(M) leader asked
Karat, who also talked to the SIT officials after meeting the law student inside the jail, asked why was the police opposing the bail of the victim when everyone knew who was the real culprit.
“The SIT is putting all pressure on the victim so that the case gets confused and weak against the politician,” she alleged.
Later, the CPI(M) delegation submitted a memorandum to the SIT demanding justice for the victim and a fair investigation into the matter.
The Shahjahanpur girl was sent to judicial custody for 14 days on Wednesday morning after she was arrested by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in the extortion case involving the former Union minister.
The SIT had on Tuesday arrested two others accused — Sachin and Vikram — for further investigation.
The SIT had earlier booked three friends of the law student after questioning them in connection with a video clip in which they were purportedly discussing extortion.
According to SIT chief Naveen Arora, the three had accepted their involvement in the extortion case, although the law student had denied the charges.
Arora said during the interrogation, the three youths claimed that the ‘victim’ was the main conspirator in the extortion bid.
Meanwhile, Swami Chinmayanand, who has been admitted to the SGPGIMS here on Monday last, is still getting treatment despite the doctors saying that everything is normal.
A medical bulletin issued by the SGPGIMS on Thursday evening said that Swami Chinmayanand was admitted in Cardiology department of SGPGI on Monday with symptoms of low blood pressure and left side chest pain. His angiography was done in which only calcification was found and there were no blockages. He is still complaining of severe weakness and urinary problems. He is under observation and undergoing further investigations for his diabetic and urinary problems, the bulletin said.
