The light punishment for former Haryana DGP S P S Rathore, convicted for molesting a teenaged girl, on Tuesday sparked a national outrage with political parties attacking it as "too little, too late" after which CBI is understood to be considering seeking its enhancement.
The parties as well as the National Commission for Women expressed indignation saying it was a "shame" that Rathore, who had held the top most post in police, was the culprit and yet got promotions year after year despite the case against him.
The father of the friend of 14-year-old Ruchika, who committed suicide three years after she was molested by Rathore in 1990, demanded reopening of the case citing the examples of Jessica Lall and Priyadarshini Mattoo cases.
A top CBI official initially expressed satisfaction over the conviction but later sources in the agency said they were thinking of approaching a court seeking enhancement of the punishment for Rathore.
Expressting concern over delay in delivering justice in Ruchika molestation case, CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member Brinda Karat and Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said Rathore should not have been given promotions year after year.
Karat said in Rajya Sabha that the legal system had "infirmities" and it should be reformed so that timely justice can be given to those seeking it.
"Our judicial system has infirmities... The culprit was rewarded with promotions even as Ruchika's brother was beaten up and false cases were registered against him", she said.
Karat said "it was the courage of Ruchika's friend Aradhana and Aradhana's parents who took the case forward and refused to cow down under pressure".
Soni told reporters that "those who are the custodians of looking up and safeguarding the interests of the people, when they themselves come under the needle of suspicion, they should not be promoted, one position after another".
L N Prakash, father of Aradhana, said Rathore should be given stiffer punishment.
Sources in CBI said the investigation agency is likely to go for an appeal against the sentence of six months imprisonment for Rathore given by a trial court in Chandigarh. PTI
