This Article is From May 26, 2010

Ruchika case: A few more days in jail for Rathore

Chandigarh:
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SPS Rathore, the man who molested 15-year-old Ruchika Girhotra 20 years ago and was sentenced to 18 months in prison for his crime on Tuesday, will have to spend at least the next two days in jail.

The former top cop's wife and lawyer, Abha, filed an appeal for bail on Wednesday, but the Punjab and Haryana High Court posted the matter for hearing on Friday, May 28. There shall be no interim relief for Rathore.

After he spent a night in Burail jail, not very far from where he had molested the young girl in 1990, the 68 eight-year-old Rathore's lawyer-wife filed a review petition on his behalf in the court of Justice S S Saron, challenging his conviction and seeking suspension of his sentence.

The court has issued notice to the CBI and other parties on the Rathore petition.

While seeking bail, Abha Rathore in her petition sought to apprise the court that Rathore suffers from a heart ailment. She also alleged that the sessions court had passed Tuesday's order "under media pressure".

On Tuesday, the sessions court had directed the jail superintendent to provide proper medical care to Rathore and sent him to jail enhancing his sentence from the six months handed to him by a CBI court in December 2009, to one-and-a-half years in prison. Rathore had challenged the six-month jail term. (Watch: Verdict restores people's faith in judiciary, says Aradhana)

The judge also allowed the pleas of the CBI and Ruchika's family for enhancement of Rathore's sentence. They had sought the maximum punishment of two years.

After the sentencing, Rathore looked grim, his face sans its usual wide grin, but he told reporters, "I will keep smiling".

The former DGP was sentenced to six months' rigorous imprisonment on December 21 last year by CBI Judge J S Sidhu for molesting Ruchika, a budding tennis player, in Panchkula on August 12, 1990. Three years after the incident, Ruchika committed suicide. The family alleged that it faced extreme harassment at the behest of the powerful cop leading to the young girl killing herself in December 1993. The shattered family, once well-entrenched in Chandigarh, left the city. And Ruchika's closest friend Aradhana, along with her parents, waged a tireless battle for justice.

Rathore, meanwhile, continued to flourish and climb the police ranks and retired to settle to a genteel, comfortable existence. In posh Panchkula, where he had molested the teenager.

After almost 20 years, in December last, when the CBI court announced a six-month sentence, there was outrage in the country. Ruchika's family filed case of abetment to suicide against Rathore. The disgraced former cop was even stripped of his President's Police Medal.

After Tuesday's verdict, Ruchika's father SC Girhotra said this was just the first battle won in the war the family was waging. He said the family would continue to fight Rathore with the charge of abetting Ruchika's suicide. (Watch: Ruchika's family vows to fight on)

While Rathore is almost certain to challenge the verdict, his troubles may have only just begun.

The CBI is currently investigating charges of attempt to murder and abetment to suicide against the former top cop. If found guilty, Rathore could face a jail term of up to 10 years.

Anand Prakash, the father of Aradhana, who had witnessed the molestation 20 years ago, welcomed the verdict and said this would send out the signal that the powerful were not above the law. Prakash and his family waged a long battle for justice for Ruchika. (Read: Anand Prakash welcomes verdict in Ruchika case)

The lawyer representing Ruchika's family, Pankaj Bharadwaj, said it was a "historic order" and he was "satisfied with the sentence" and would bolster the faith of the common man in the system of justice. (With PTI inputs)

Also See: India's Ruchika: Fight for justice
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