Chandigarh,
June 30: In a significant development the Punjab and Haryana High Court on
Tuesday dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of an accused in the alleged rape
of a West Bengal based woman at the Tikri border in Bahadurgarh, Haryana.
The High
Court bench of Justice Jasgurpreet Singh Puri dismissed the bail plea. A
detailed order regarding the case is awaited, said a court website.
The
petitioner, Ankur, had moved the High Court, seeking anticipatory bail in the
case saying he was being unnecessarily harassed and humiliated by the police
even though his name was not mentioned at any stage by the victim or her father
in the complaint, the relevant portion of the judgment posted on the website
said.
It may be
recalled that the father of the victim, living in West Bengal had lodged a complaint
with the Bahadurgarh Police accusing Ankur and others of raping and sexually
exploited his daughter when she was at the Tikri Border in Bahadurgarh to take
part in the ongoing farmers’ agitation.
An FIR in
the matter was registered on May 9 at Bahadurgarh’s City Police Station in
Jhajjar district of Haryana. As per the allegations, a delegation of six,
including the petitioner of a farmer's outfit, reached West Bengal as part of
the protest campaign. The victim met the group during the tour and joined the
group on April 11 to travel to Delhi, said a media report.
In April 24, she had developed a cough and difficulty in breathing, following which she was taken to a hospital where she was diagnosed with Covid. On April 29, her father reached the hospital and she alleged that she was sexually exploited in the tent in Tikri. The victim later died of Covid complications.