A 22-year-old woman from BKC's Bharat Nagar slums was brutally raped on August 14 at around 3 am by her husband's cousin Firoz Ansari.
The brave lady then slit the rapist's throat with the very knife he was carrying and killed him. She then woke up her husband Zakir Hussain who informed the police.
At first the police praised her for her daring act, but surprisingly three months later she was arrested for culpable homicide not amounting to murder under Section 304 of Indian Penal Code on the specious plea that no evidence of rape has been found, reports Mumbai Mirror.
Three months after the police assured her she wouldn't be harassed as she killed the rapist in defence, she was arrested and thrown behind bars along with her year-old child.
The woman's husband Zakir Hussain was in a drunken slumber when his cousin, Firoz Ansari, forcibly entered their home and dragged her out at knife-point.
In her statement to the police, the woman had said that Ansari slashed her neck, punched and pushed her into a makeshift shanty. When she refused to undress, he knifed her in the abdomen and raped her.
When she began dressing after he committed the act, Ansari screamed, “Where are you running? You will raise a hue and cry. I will finish you here and now.”
The traumatized woman said, “I picked up the knife lying on the floor, grabbed him by his hair and slit his throat, killing him instantly.” The woman then woke up Zakir, who informed the BKC police.
The woman at first feared for her life and even approached the BKC police to arrest her, so that Ansari's relatives couldn't avenge his death. The police had then sent her back with adequate security, saying that she was ‘a victim of circumstances' and that she did ‘what any woman would do in such a situation'.
“If we arrest and harass her, it will send out a wrong message to rape victims that they cannot act in self-defence,” the BKC police had then said.
They registered a case of rape against Ansari and a case of murder against the woman. Surprisingly, three months later, the BKC police have reneged on their assurance.
On Monday, they summoned the woman to the police station and arrested her for culpable homicide not amounting to murder (Section 304 of IPC).
The stunned woman was produced before the Bandra metropolitan court, where she was handed a copy of the charge sheet. She sought bail, but the police opposed it, and the court sent her to judicial custody till November 30, along with her year-old baby.
The woman's lawyer Mubin Solkar said, “All along, the police assured her they will ensure her safety. Now, they not only arrested her, but opposed bail. She was a victim of the worst crime possible against a woman, and she can't even exercise her right to private defence for it? Besides, she slit his throat in a fit of rage, which falls under exception in such a case. We will argue for bail, as she did what she did to save her life.
Additional CP (Western Region) Amitabh Gupta said, “The medical evidence has not been able to conclusively establish that the deceased committed rape, and in that case, her right of private defence doesn't stand. So we had to arrest and chargesheet her for Ansari's death.”
A BKC police officer added that the crucial ‘vaginal swab' report had come negative. The forensic report, however, shows that her salwar has three semen stains, and her medical report shows she sustained 10 knife injuries on her body.
Solkar added, “The police didn't investigate the case further as the accused is dead. But they want to keep her behind bars to defend her life.” The woman's husband Zakir said, “My wife and son are in Byculla jail, and my son's health is deteriorating. I hope she gets bail soon.”
