Ruchika Girhotra, a 14-year-old tennis player, was molested by then Haryana police IG S.P.S. Rathore in Panchkula in 1990.
Three years later, Ruchika killed herself, which her friend and case witness Aradhana attributes to the harassment of Ruchika and her family by those in power.
Nineteen years later, Rathore walks away with six months of rigorous imprisonment and a 1000-rupee fine, reportedly due to his old age and the “prolonged trial”.
Too little, too late, the National Commission for Women (NCW) said in response to the verdict by the special CBI magistrate.
The victim’s age is not supposed to influence the Indian legal system. The law, however, does make an exception when it concerns rape of minors, like a minimum 10-year sentence for rape of a minor as against a seven-year norm.
