KATHUA RAPE-N-MURDER | Trial begins at JJB Kathua, next hearing on July 29

The Juvenile Justice Board, Kathua, directed the Crime Branch to produce prosecution witnesses in the rape-and-murder case of an eight-year-old nomad girl of Rasana as the trial began Monday.

On the first day of trial before the Board, the Crime Branchproduced the accused.  The Board hasframed charges against the accused and it directed the Crime Branch to producethe prosecution evidence and witnesses.

   

According to the Crime Branch, the accused ‘juvenile’ alongwith seven other accused had kidnapped the eight-year-old nomad girl in January2018, tortured her during her captivity, and subsequently strangulated her todeath. Even as the accused was produced before the Board, the Crime Branch failedto produce prosecution witnesses.

The court/Board directed the Crime Branch to produce thewitnesses on July 29, the next date of hearing.

Meanwhile, the Crime Branch moved an application before theJJB Kathua praying that the hearing in the case may be deferred citing that ithas filed a petition challenging the age of the accused as juvenile before theJ&K High Court. The CB pleaded that the age of the accused was yet to bedetermined in the High Court.

However, the JJB declined to defer the case and directed theCrime Branch to produce witnesses on the next date of hearing.

Pertinently, the accused was the first person who wasarrested by the Hiranagar police when nomads started protest demonstration inthe wake of the incident.

It may be recalled that a special court in Pathankot lastmonth had sentenced three men including a temple caretaker to life imprisonmentin the case and convicted three others for the ghastly crime awarding them 5year jail term. The court had acquitted one accused in the case.

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