Widespread protests erupted across Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Friday following the death of a 14-year-old tribal girl, who was allegedly repeatedly raped and impregnated by her government school headmaster.
The victim, a Class 5 student at Government Middle School, Bumalpora, and belonging to the Gujjar community, died en route to a hospital in Punjab after a forced, illegal termination of her pregnancy resulted in a stillbirth on Thursday, officials said.
Following public outrage and demonstrations after Friday prayers, the police arrested the primary accused headmaster, Khalid Hussain Sheikh (42), and his brother Tariq Hussain, residents of Gorinall village of Chatroo subdivision.
“It seems that the accused sexually assaulted the minor girl over a period of time that led to her pregnancy of seven to eight months,” said a police officer.
The case took a fatal turn when the accused and his brother allegedly forced the victim to orally ingest medicines to illegally terminate the pregnancy. When the minor’s health rapidly deteriorated after delivering a stillborn baby, she was rushed to Kishtwar district hospital, transferred to Doda district hospital, and eventually placed in an ambulance bound for Punjab. She succumbed to her medical complications on Dhar Road during the journey, said officials.
According to the police, information was received that a minor girl had died under suspicious circumstances and her body was lying at the Kishtwar hospital. A police team, including sub-inspector Ghulam Mohammad Butt, went to the hospital and took custody of the body and her stillborn baby.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police, information was received that a minor girl had died under suspicious circumstances and her body was lying at the Kishtwar hospital. A police team, including sub-inspector Ghulam Mohammad Butt, went to the hospital and took custody of the body and her stillborn baby.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police, statements of the victim’s father and other persons were recorded. The medical team has preserved viscera and DNA samples for forensic analysis. The bodies have since been handed over to the family for burial.
A case has been registered under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against the accused at the Chatroo police station. The charges include criminal conspiracy, death caused by an act done with intent to cause miscarriage, preventing a child from being born alive, causing the death of an unborn child, and aggravated penetrative sexual assault against a minor.
The FIR also details that the accused headmaster allegedly threatened the victim’s family and offered them financial bribes to suppress the crime before the forced abortion took place.
In response to the criminal charges and police custody, the chief education officer (CEO) of Kishtwar has placed the headmaster under immediate suspension under Rule 31 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services Rules, pending a full inquiry.