Mumbai Crime: Three police officers made accused in minor's rape case

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A special Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act court allowed a plea to include three police officials on Wednesday as accused for forcing a minor girl to marry a rape accused in 2013. The 13-year-old girl had been gang-raped, following which she became pregnant. Based on detailed testimony of the victim who is now 20-year-old and her father deposing as witnesses against the two suspects and three others accused of abetment, an application was made on their behalf by advocate Wesley Menezes to add the three police officers as accused who forced the girl to marry her offender.

The three cops identified as Vakola police inspector Vivek Shende, who was then an inspector, police inspector Jaywant Shinde who was then an assistant police inspector at Amboli police station and Janita Bhosale, who was then a constable forced the victim to marry her offender. Advocate Wesley Menezes stated the matter came to light in 2014 after a social worker noticed the victim with a child and inquired about her. The victim and her father's attempts to register an FIR in 2013 were allegedly thwarted by the three cops, the two alleged rapists, the brother of one of the accused and two local youths who forced her to marry the accused.

After the social worker's intervention, an FIR was finally registered in 2014. But unsatisfied with the investigation, the victim's father approached the Bombay high court seeking transfer of probe. In May 2018, the father then submitted the plea to add the names of the three police officers as accused in the case before the special POCSO court, through advocate Wesley Menezes.

The victim in her statement said she went to the police station at 10 am and narrated the incident to Shinde after which the accused was brought to the station. She was then kept in a separate room and at 5 pm, she was taken to Shende's cabin where the accused and his family were present. Shende then told her to marry the ‘rapist' so that her child gets a father's name and said his family would take care of the child's expenses. When she refused, the other two cops and accused continued to pressure her.

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