Woman inmate ‘raped’ in police van in April 2024: Haryana human rights panel sends notice to DGP, prisons chief
The woman, who is facing 15-year sentence in a drug-trafficking case, had alleged that she along with two inmates, Manish and Satish, were taken to PGIMS, Rohtak, on February 19 for medical check-up and the duo raped her inside the police vehicle on PGIMS campus after offering her spiked drinks.
The Haryana Human Rights Commission (HHRC) has issued notice to Haryana’s director general of police (DGP) and director general of prisons over the alleged rape of a woman prisoner by two male jail inmates inside a police vehicle in which they were being taken from Jind jail to Rohtak’s Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) on April 19 last year.
The woman, who is facing 15-year sentence in a drug-trafficking case, had alleged that she along with two inmates, Manish and Satish, were taken to PGIMS, Rohtak, on February 19 for medical check-up and the duo raped her inside the police vehicle on PGIMS campus after offering her spiked drinks. She had alleged that the incident took place when the accompanying cops were busy preparing documents.
The Haryana Human Rights Commission has observed that this incident highlights lapses in custodial management and prisoners’ transportation protocols.
“The alleged sexual assault of a female prisoner by male inmates constitutes a severe violation of her right to personal security. International human right standards, including the universal declaration of human rights emphasise the protection of the individual from such abuses,” the HHRC said in the letter.
The commission has directed Haryana DGP and director general of prisons to follow guidelines of the National Human Rights Commission concerning the treatment of prisoners, including the prevention of sexual violence within custodial settings.
The commission has sought a full response from Haryana’s director general of police and director general of prisons by the next date of hearing i.e. March 4 and attached the news item of Hindustan Times about the incident.
