SRINAGAR: A villager in south Kashmir on Thursday told the police that his minor daughter was allegedly raped by a 30-year-old man more than a month ago.
The 13-year-old girl, who has not been identified, was allegedly abducted by Shahid Ahmad Wani who then raped her at his home in Aaliyarpor village of Shopian district on November 25, a police officer quoted her father as saying.
“The accused was arrested immediately and we have lodged a case,” the officer said, adding that the medical reports for confirming rape are still awaited.
‘Stigma’
The girl was allegedly raped by the accused when his family was out of town for his father’s treatment. She narrated the incident the same day, her father told the police.
But he did not file a complaint with us until today “as he said he waited to talk to the parents of the accused, who got back from Delhi recently”, the police officer said.
“May be he was worried about the unfortunate social stigma attached with such incidents. But more details about the delay will be clear after further investigations.”
Kashmir is largely conservative in its approach towards women and observers say crimes such as rape are reported less with the police than resolved mutually between families when possible.
Two days ago police said a 25-year-old Dalit woman was allegedly gangraped by three people in Nowshera tehsil of Rajouri district. The incident had happened on Dec 22.
‘Change in laws’
The fresh case is the fourth incident of rape reported in more than ten days in the Muslim-majority state, where violence against women is increasing.
Recently the state joined the country in its massive outrage against the gangrape of a Delhi girl, who died at a Singapore hospital on Saturday where she was being treated for severe injuries.
The protesters demanded more stringent laws against rapists and also a change in the way the country treated its women.
Kashmir has its own constitution and authorities say they have already begun a process of modifying the rape laws.
“Very effective and stringent provisions are needed to be incorporated in the law relating to sexual offences to make it deterrent and in tune with public sentiments,” Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, Ali Mohammad Sagar said on Monday.
Reports say the authorities have not ruled out death penalty as a punishment for such crimes.
