The Gajraula Nuns rape case is a unsolved rape and robbery case from the town of Gajraula in Uttar Pradesh. It occurred in the night of July 12, 1990 around 2 A.M. in the premises of St. Mary school.[1] Six nuns were assaulted and two were raped and a total of 110,000 rupees were stolen. The case caught national attention when the media started reporting about it on 22 July 1990.[1] Due to massive protests and pressure from Christian groups then Uttar Pradesh Chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav declared 2 lakh rupees compensation to the two nuns who were raped and promised for immediate action.[2] Four people were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Police with 3 wristwatches which the police claimed to have been stolen on the night. The Supreme Court later acquitted the 4 men after the nuns said that they were not the culprit and they were being forced to accept them as the culprit.[3] The case was given to Central Bureau of Investigation with only three months to investigate and file a Chargesheet.[4]
| Date | July 12, 1990 |
|---|---|
| Location | Gajraula |
| Motive | Unknown |
| Perpetrator | Unknown |
| Accused | 4 (later acquitted by Supreme court of India) |
The incident
editOn the nights of July 12 and 13, the robbery and rape of 6 nuns and a maid occurred at a convent while the nuns were asleep. Three men of dark complexion broke into the convent through a kitchen window by forcefully removing an iron rod. They were armed and minimally dressed, with two wearing only underwear and one in both underwear and an undershirt.[5]
The assailants first attacked the maid, forcibly taking her earrings and wristwatch. They then entered the room where six nuns were sleeping. Brandishing iron rods, knives, and sticks, they threatened the nuns, confining five of them in the room while their leader took one nun to another room and raped her. When the nuns locked in the room began to cry, the guard at the door beat them and threatened them with death.[5]
The leader then took another nun and raped her as well. The three men subsequently assaulted the remaining nuns, broke into the almirah containing salary funds, and fled with the stolen money.[5]
Aftermath
editOn July 13, 1990 at 6.20 A.M. sister Floreena, principal of St. Mary's School lodged First Information Report at Police Station Gajraula where she described the incident.[4] The nuns initially did not want to publicize the case but the national media made it a major issue. Many Christian groups met and requested the then Minister of Defence George Fernandes for immediate intervention he promised them of arresting the culprits and provide help to the nuns. CM Mulayam Singh and their Ministers were at first denying that there were any rapes but later they had to accept when Christian group started pressurizing the government.[2] The police arrested 4 individuals with 3 wristwatches but they were later acquitted when the nuns challenged the police's findings in the supreme court and accused them of pressurizing them into accepting that those 4 men were the culprit. Supreme court transferred the case to CBI and asked them to complete the investigation in 3 months.[4] The case remains unsolved and there have been no new updates by the CBI or the Police.[6]
References
edit- ^ a b "India Police Claim Arrest of Culprits in Convent Robbery and Nuns' Rape Case". Union of Catholic Asian News. August 5, 1990.
- ^ a b "Mulayam faces difficult time pacifying Christian community following rape of two nuns in UP". India Today. 1990-08-31. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ^ WSN. "2 held in nuns' rape case". Sikh Heritage Education. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ^ a b c "Gudalure M.J Cherian And Others v. Union Of India And Others, Supreme Court Of India, Judgment, Law, casemine.com". casemine.com. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ^ a b c "Gudalure M.J. Cherian And Ors. vs Union Of India (Uoi) And Ors. on 9 December, 1991". indiankanoon.org. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
On the night between July 12/13,1990 at about 2.00 A.M. three miscreants entered the premises through the kitchen by breaking-open the window. They were not of fair colour and were aged round about 20/24-30 years. All of them were of blackish complexion and were wearing under-wears. Third person who appeared to be a gang-leader, was wearing underpant and baniyan. The miscreants man-handled the maid servant and snatched her ear-rings and wrist watch. Thereafter all the miscreants went into the room where staff sisters Tara, Tessey, Anjla, Nisha, Roslit and Mamta were sleeping. The sisters were threatened at the point of knife, iron-bar and sticks. The sisters were made to sit in the room and one of the miscreants kept on standing outside the door with some iron implements. The accused who was leader of the gang took sister Tara to another room by force and committed rape on her. On making hue and cry, the sisters were given beating and were threatened to be killed. The miscreant who was standing outside the door took sister Roslit by force to the adjoining room and committed rape on her. All the three miscreants assaulted sister Mamta, Anjali and other sisters. They ran-sacked the house and looted Rs. 1,11,000/- by breaking the almirah. The cash was kept for disbursing the salaries of the staff and for payment to the book-seller.
- ^ "Twenty-five years of violating Indian nuns with impunity". Union of Catholic Asian News. Retrieved July 12, 2024.