The Ruchika Girhotra case involves the molestation of 14-year-old Ruchika Girhotra in 1990 by the Inspector General of Police Shambu (S.P.S. Rathore) in Haryana, India. After she made a complaint, the victim, her family, and her friends were systematically harassed by the police, leading to her eventual suicide. On 22 December 2009, after 14 years, 40 adjournments, and more than 400 hearings, the court finally pronounced Rathore guilty under Section 354 IPC (molestation) and sentenced him to six months' imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1,000. The CBI had opposed Rathore's plea and had sought an enhancement of his sentence from six months to the maximum of two years after his conviction. Rejecting his appeal against his conviction by a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special court, Chandigarh District Court on 25 May sentenced the disgraced former police official to one-and-a-half years of rigorous imprisonment, enhancing his earlier six-month sentence and immediately taken into custody and taken to the Burail prison.Ruchika Girhotra Case: Molestation of Minor, Abuse of Power. The Times of India.Ruchika Case: Women's Association Upset With Verdict. Ibnlive.in.com (23 December 2009). On 11 November 2010, the Supreme Court granted bail to S.P.S. Rathore on the condition that he remain in Chandigarh. Recently, the Supreme Court of India upheld Rathore's conviction in molestation case but restricted the punishment to six months' jail already served by him considering his age.
Background Ruchika Girhotra was a student in Class X A (Batch of 1991) at Sacred Heart School for Girls in Chandigarh. Her father, S.C Girhotra, was a manager with UCO Bank. Her mother died when she was ten years old.. The Times of India. She had one brother, Ashu.
Ruchika, along with her friend Aradhna Prakash, were enrolled as trainees at the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association (HLTA).
Aradhna's parents Anand and Madhu Prakash attended over 400 hearings, after Ruchika's father and brother had to leave Panchkula due to harassment. Supreme Court lawyers Pankaj Bhardwaj and Meet Malhotra fought the case for free since 1996.The Ruchika Girhotra Case. Hindustan Times.
Born in 1941 and a 1966-Batch Indian Police Service officer of the Haryana Cadre, Rathore was on deputation to Bhakhra Beas Management Board as Director, Vigilance and Security, when he molested Ruchika. He was the founding president of the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association, and Rathore used the garage of his house at 469 Sector 6, Panchkula, as its office.Rathore ‘abandoned’ by his buddies, Thaindian News . Thaindian.com. The house used to have a clay tennis court behind it, built by encroaching on government land. A few young girls played in this court. Action by local authorities later led to the tennis court being reduced to a badminton court.Molestor, Murderer, Rapist: Sector 6 has seen them all, Sindh Today. Sindhtoday.net.
Rathore's wife Abha is an advocate. She defended his case from the beginning. She practices law in Panchkula and Chandigarh. Ajay Jain is another counsel for Rathore.Hype can’t be sustained on facts: Rathore lawyer, Indian Express. The Indian Express. (29 December 2009).
Rathore's daughter, Priyanjali, was Ruchika's classmate. She is now a practising lawyer.How her world came apart bit by bit..., "The Tribune", Chandigarh . The Tribune. His son, Rahul, used to practice law at the Punjab and Haryana High Courts. He used to be an advocate with Cox & Kings in Mumbai.Rahul Rathore
Sub-Inspector Prem Dutt and Assistant Sub-Inspectors Sewa Singh and Jai Narayan of the Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) Staff Office in Mansa Devi tortured Ashu under the directions of Rathore.
Sewa Singh is currently the Assistant Station House Officer of Pinjore police station. He has not reported for work since the sentencing of Rathore created national headlines.Another accused cop seeks relief. The Times of India. He lives in Ratpur colony in Pinjore. Ajay Jain is also serving as his counsel.Co-accused policeman absent without leave for ten days, Express India
Molestation
Ruchika was a promising tennis player. On 11 August 1990, Rathore visited Ruchika's house and met her father S. C. Girhotra. As head of the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association, Rathore promised to get special training for Ruchika. He requested that Ruchika meet him the following day in connection with this.
On 12 August (Sunday), Ruchika, along with her friend Aradhana (Aradhana Prakash), went to play at the lawn tennis court and met Rathore in his office (in the garage of his house). On seeing both of them, Rathore asked Aradhana to call the tennis coach (Mr. Thomas) to his room. Aradhana left, and Rathore was alone with Ruchika. He immediately grabbed her hand and waist and pressed his body against hers. Ruchika tried to push him away, but he continued molesting her.
But Aradhana returned and witnessed what was going on. On seeing her, Rathore released Ruchika and fell back in his chair. He then asked Aradhana to go out of his room and personally bring the coach with her. When she refused, Rathore rebuked Aradhana loudly, asking her to bring the coach. He insisted that Ruchika stayed in his room, but she managed to run out.
Ruchika told Aradhana everything that happened. Both girls did not tell anybody at first. The next day, they did not go to play tennis. The following day, 14 August, they changed the time of practice to avoid Rathore, and played till 6:30 pm. However, as they were leaving, the ball picker, Patloo, told them Rathore had called them to his office. It was at this point that the girls decided to tell their parents about the incident.Ruchika's affidavit: Rathore pressed his body against mine, India Today. Indiatoday.intoday.in (23 December 2009).Beyond the uproar, Sunday Tribune. The Tribune.
Following this, Panchkula residents, mostly parents of tennis players, gathered at the residence of Anand Prakash, father of Ruchika's friend Aradhana, and decided that some strong action must be taken by way of bringing up the matter with higher authorities.
They could not contact either the Chief Minister Hukum Singh or Home Minister Sampat Singh, but met Home Secretary J K Duggal, who, on 17 August 1990, discussed the matter with the Home Minister and asked DGP Ram Rakshpal Singh to investigate.Rathore tried all tricks. Hindustan Times. (23 December 2009).
Rathore allegedly paid some residents of Rajiv Colony (a slum) in Panchkula and also garnered the support of people from his community in Naraingarh, Ambala district. They staged dharnas outside the office and home of R R Singh.CBI to re-probe Rathore's role in Ruchika case, ZeeNews
On 3 September 1990, the inquiry report submitted by R R Singh to Home Secretary J K Duggal indicted Rathore.Skeletons falling out of Haryana govt closet. The Times of India. It recommended that an FIR be filed immediately against Rathore. Duggal forwarded the report to the Home Minister Sampat Singh, who failed to forward it to the Chief Minister for necessary action.Ruchika Molestation Case: The Rogues Gallery, IBN Live. Ibnlive.in.com (26 December 2009). The Home Secretary who replace Duggal never followed up on the report.
The report also revealed that an ex-MLA, Jagjeet Singh Tikka organised a large group of men to shout slogans in front of Ruchika's house and harass her family. Rathore enjoyed the patronage of both the Hukam Singh and the Om Prakash Chautala governments.We Need Security Says Ruchika Girhotras Family, Gaea Times. Breakingnews.gaeatimes.com (24 December 2009).Ruchika Case: Rathore Used Political Influence Says Former Home Secy. The Times of India (24 December 2009).Rathore Enjoyed Patronage of Four Haryana Chief Ministers, Hindustan Times
Instead of filing an FIR as recommended by the report, the government preferred departmental action, and, on 28 May 1991, issued a chargesheet against Rathore. However, the government's legal remembrancer, R. K. Nehru, suggested in 1992 that state government was not competent to issue the chargesheet, insisting that an FIR be registered. Then, the C M Bhajan Lal's office referred the case to the chief secretary for advice. Eventually, no action was taken.
Rathore was enjoying support from all the Chief Ministers and was using his influence and loop holes in the system to escape possible conviction.Baffling twists & turns helped Rathore : Latest Headlines, News – India Today. Indiatoday.intoday.in (4 January 2010).Sharma, Surender. (5 January 2010) 'I wrote to Chautala, he complained to Vajpayee'. Mid-day.com.Ruchika case: Rathore finds loopholes to counter charges. The Times of India (3 January 2010).
Harassment
On 20 September 1990, two weeks after the inquiry indicted Rathore, Ruchika was expelled from her school, Sacred Heart School for Girls, in Sector 26, Chandigarh. Ruchika had studied there from Class I.
The school actively plotted against Ruchika. The official reason for her expulsion was non-payment of fees. The school had actually refused to accept her fees. No notice was given to Ruchika for non-payment of fees, as is the school's normal procedure. The school's brochure states that non-payment of fees can only lead to being disallowed to take exams. It is not grounds for expulsion.Ruchika Expulsion Was Against School Norms. The Times of India (25 December 2009).From School To CM All Ganged Up All Try to Dodge Now, Express India
A magisterial inquiry has found that there were 135 similar cases of non-payment of fees at Sacred Hearts, but Ruchika was the only student ever expelled on these grounds. Of the 17 cases of late fees in 1990, at least 8 students paid their fees later than Ruchika did, but no action was taken against them. Ironically, the defaulters included Rathore's daughter Priyanjali.Sacred Heart principal to be quizzed today, Indian Express. The Indian Express. (31 December 2009).Ruchika's expulsion from school wrong: Rpt, Zee News
The principal of the school, Sister Sebastina, who used to occupy the office then, accepted to the magisterial inquiry that she personally issued instructions for the removal of Ruchika's name from school register.
Ruchika's expulsion from school was later used by Rathore's lawyers to question her character.
It has been alleged that Ruchika was expelled to avoid embarrassing Rathore's daughter Priyanjali, who was her classmate.Ruchika embarrassed Rathore daughter Priyanjali?, NDTV. Ndtv.com.
The school tried to stall the magisterial inquiry into Ruchika's dismissal. Sister Sebastina only appeared before the inquiry after five days. The Chandigarh authorities threatened the school with legal action if they continued to stall the investigation.Ruchika's school not aiding probe: authorities, IBN Live. Ibnlive.in.com.
After her expulsion, Ruchika confined herself indoors. Whenever she went out she was followed and abused by Rathore's henchmen. Rathore deployed policemen in plainclothes in front of Ruchika's house to keep an eye on the family.
False cases of theft, murder and civil defamation were filed against Ruchika's father and her 10-year-old brother Ashu. Five theft cases against Ashu were registered by Sub-Inspector Prem Dutt. The cases were filed when KP Singh was the Superintendent of Police, Ambala. Singh has been named in an FIR filed by Ashu.I am Rathore's victim: Ruchika's brother, IBN Live. Ibnlive.in.com (31 December 2009). Singh later provided Rathore's advocates a statement absolving Rathore.Ruchika case: Rathore finds loopholes to counter charges. The Times of India (3 January 2010). Singh is now the Inspector General of Police (Training) in Haryana and works at the Chandigarh Head Office.
Cases were filed against Anand Parkash, his wife Madhu, and their minor daughter Aradhana.