GAJRAULA: Fear stalks St Mary’s Convent, witness to the rape of two Catholic nuns by armed intruders 12 days ago, with the culprits still at large.
Hectic efforts were on to bring the situation in the industrial township near Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh a Hindu dominated state back to normal, with police officers arranging meetings with parents of children studying in the school and the nuns.
While the nuns are determined that the school will remain closed till the culprits are brought to book, the parents have called for a general strike in the township on Wednesday to pressurise the police into taking action.
The nuns, who were reluctant to talk about the incident however, told PTI that they were terrified to step outside the convent. Though a number of police officials, including the SSP of Moradabad have visited the nuns, there was no evidence of any police picket near the convent.
We are helpless. Unless the culprits are caught how we can go on as if nothing has happened” one of the nuns said.
Three armed men broke into the convent on the night of July 12 by removing the iron bars of the kitchen window. They entered the dormitory where the nine nuns from Southern Kerala state were sleeping, terrorised them by slapping them and threatening to kill them. Two of the nuns were raped at knife point. The assailants then decamped with nearly RS 1.10 Lakh
Govt siding rapists The All India Democratic women’s Association (AIDWA) Thursday said an attempt ‘was being made to shield the culprits and urged federal home minister to spare no effort ‘to bring the criminals to book.
The AIDWA joint secretary Brinda Karat condemned the statement by the deputy inspector general Moradabad, Kanhaiya Lal Gupta that rape had not occurred and said this was part of the attempt by the state government to play down the incident.
In a memorandum presented to home Minister Mufti Mohd Sayeed, the AIDWA pointed out that there were two medical reports of the victims, one of which was made 12 hours after the assault.
While the first medical report was made by the doctors at the primary health clinic at Gajraula, the second was made by the gynecologist at the Government Hospital in nearby Moradabad over 12 hours after the crime, Karat said,
The AIDWA delegation which first visited Gajraula on July 22 following a news report in a Sunday paper here, visited the convent again Wednesday to investigate claims made by the Moradabad police that no tape had occurred.
Describing the conclusions drawn by the doctor at Moradabad in the second medical report as “unwarranted, and subjective” Karat said the doctor had not noted the injuries of the victims.
The AIDWA memorandum to the home Minister gives “details of the technical contradictions in the medical report” Karat said, adding that a copy of it had been sent to VUP chief minister Mulayam Singh Yaday for appropriate action.
She said it was unfortunate that U P state minister Sukhda Mishra, who had gone to Gajraula as the chief minister’s emissary had also said no rape had taken place without bothering to study the two medical Reports.
The memorandum urged the home minister to ensure that the charges of rape are proceeded on and no effort is made to shield the criminals.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 3, 1990
