Sweet scent of justice
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: June 14, 2013 -
The Umorok raped accused being herded out of the court on June 12 2013 :: Pix - Hueiyen Lanpao
This is indeed heartwarming.
In a record time of just about eight months, the trial in the gang-rape case of a woman U-morok (chilli) trader from Tamenglong district by four men including two personnel of Indian Reserve Battalion (IRB) on the intervening night of March 21 and 22 last year near Kakyai Primary School in Irom Meijrao has been completed and the District and Sessions Judge, Manipur West pronounced all the four accused rapists guilty.
Though the quantum of punishment to be awarded is pending another sentence hearing due on June 19 next, one can safely conclude that this is the first ever rape case in Manipur in which the trial has been completed within a year of submitting the chargesheet by the concerned police station in September last year, thus, setting a record.
Of course, the fastest trial of rape case in India has already been set by a fast track court in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh on January 28 this year, when it completed the trial in 10 days after filing of the chargesheet and sentenced a man to 14-year rigorous imprisonment for raping a one-and-half-years old girl child in 2012.
Nonetheless, the case of gang-rape of U-morok seller from Tamenglong has definitely set a precedent in the judicial annals of Manipur, where people have almost lost their faith in the judiciary, by ensuring justice to the victim in a record time.
As the Special Public Prosecutor of the case Ngangom Tajkumar had pointed out, judgment in the present case could have come earlier if the police had not taken time in filing the charge sheet, speedy trial of any case depends to a large extent on the efficiency of the police in doing their part of the job in registering the case, investigating into it promptly but properly and framing the required chargesheet in time for submission to the relevant court.
It is only after the chargesheet framed by the concerned police station has been landed in the court room that the trial could begin and the law to take its course of action.
So, in the light of the recent Supreme Court directive for completing cases related to sexual harassment within three months’ time, there is an urgent need on the part of the State Police to speed up its investigation pace as well.
On the other hand, completing the trial in the gang-rape case of woman U-morok seller in a record time by the court of District and Sessions Judge, Manipur West, has shown how the wheel of judiciary can actually be made to run faster if the existing law courts were designated with specific purposes like dealing with cases of crimes against women and children, instead of just bundling up with all sorts of lawsuits without the required manpower and infrastructures as in the case of the two fast track courts in the State, namely Additional District & Sessions Judge, Manipur East and Additional & Sessions Judge, Manipur West, which were established way back in December, 2001 but remains grounded.
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