Hathras horror: UP Police file 19 cases across the state, charges include sedition

Image Courtesy:thestatesman.com

The Uttar Pradesh Police and administration have now become most active in the follow up to the investigations on what has happened after the assault and gang rape of the young Dalit woman in Hathras. Police are reported to have filed 19 First Information Reports (FIRs), in face of the massive criticism over how they have handled the case so far.

According to reports in NDTV and Indian Express, the police now list sedition, conspiracy and promoting religious hatred as charges in the main FIR filed in Hathras. These cases and charges have been filed soon after UP Chief Minister Adityanath alleged that the Hathras horror was “being exploited by those who were upset at his government’s progress” stated NDTV quoting senior police officer Prashant Kumar saying, “There is a deep conspiracy in Hathras, we will investigate the truth.” The charges listed on the main FIR include inciting caste divides, religious discrimination, doctoring electronic evidence, a conspiracy against the state and defamation. 

As expected, after many political leaders visited the bereaved Dalit family, UP police also added charges of Covid-19 protocol violations. Adityanath had recently warned BJP workers of “conspiracies against his government” and an attempt to incite caste and religious riots. “Those who do not like development, they want to incite caste and communal riots in the country and state and want to stop development,” the NDTV report recalled the Chief Minister’s words. A senior policeman had even claimed that “no rape” was indicated, and was countered by facts that the forensic report was based on samples taken 11 days after the woman was attacked. She had made a dying declaration alleging rape and assault. 

Now the same UP Police are claiming that they have unearthed an “international plot” to instigate riots along caste lines and defame the Adityanath government. ‘Upper caste’ groups have already held major meetings to change the narrative and claim that the accused are innocent. The brutal assault of the 19-year-old Dalit woman seems to have not moved the powerful to the reality unfolding in Hathras. On Sunday, an FIR was registered against unidentified persons at the Chandpa Police Station in Hathras under several stringent sections of the IPC, including sedition. According to senior journalists breaking the news, the UP Govt FIR on charges of sedition also says the “victim family was instigated, pressured to make false statements and offered Rs 50 lakh by certain people who as per a conspiracy wanted to spread caste riots in the whole state.”

No accused are named, stated the news on social media. However a website, justiceforhathrasvictim, now defunct, is being linked to the ‘conspiracy’, it apparently had information on ‘how to protest safely and avoid the police’. They’re linking it to Anti CAA etc, stated a social media user.

Chandpa police station in-charge confirmed to The Indian Express that an FIR has been lodged, but refused to talk more about the case. The FIR was registered under sections 109 (abetment if the act abetted is committed in consequence and where no express provision is made for its punishment), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 124A (sedition), 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and four of its sub-sections, 153 B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national-integration), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the IPC.

Another conspiracy, this time aired by ABP news stated that “PFI and SDPI wanted to set fire to ethnic violence in Hathras,”

The Delhi Police were the first to register cases against peaceful protestors demanding justice for Hathras’ Dalit victim, a few days ago. The protestors had gathered at Jantar Mantar, and according to police they violated Section 144 CrPC, charged them under section 188 of IPC, 3 Epidemic Act and 51(b) Disaster Management Act

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