I can be raped or killed: Lawyer of Kathua victim's family claims threat ahead of trial

The lawyer of Kathua rape and murder victim’s family, Deepika S Rajawat, has claimed threat to her life. She claimed that she was threatened and fears that she might be even raped or killed. The lawyer has decided to formally inform the Supreme Court about the alleged threats she has been receiving.

Speaking to news agency ANI, Deepika said, “I don't know till when I will be alive. I can be raped, my modesty can be outraged, I can be killed, I can be damaged. I was threatened that 'we will not forgive you'. I am going to tell SC that I am in danger.”

This comes ahead of the beginning of the trial in the brutal gangrape and murder case of an 8-year-old girl in Kathua. The trial is slated to be held against eight accused, including a juvenile, who allegedly held the minor girl in captivity in a village temple in Kathua district. The minor girl was allegedly sedated and sexually assaulted before being murdered.

Meanwhile, a five-member committee of the Bar Council of India (BCI) will visit Kathua city in Jammu and Kashmir and submit a factual report on the case after seeking time from the Supreme Court on April 19. An announcement in this regard was made by BCI chief Manan Mishra on Sunday.

The fact-finding team will include former BCI chief Tarun Agarwal, BCI co-chairmen S Prabakaran and Ramachandra G Shah, and members Razia Beig of the Bar Council of Uttrakhand and Naresh Dikshit, an advocate.

They will visit the state and reach out to office-bearers of the Bar Associations of Jammu and Kathua and also meet the affected families and the common people to figure out what actually transpired, Mishra told reporters.

In a related development, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday accepted the resignations of two controversial BJP ministers Chandra Prakash Ganga and Lal Singh who had participated in a rally in support of the people arrested in connection with the recent rape and murder of an eight-year-old Muslim girl in Kathua district.

An eight-year-old girl belonging to the nomadic community had gone missing on January 10 while grazing horses in Rasana forest in Kathua's Hiranagar area. Her body was found a week later. Police investigations revealed she was held captive inside a temple, sedated and repeatedly raped before her murder.