Trigger Warning: The article contains graphic details some readers may find disturbing.
Two months after a 19-year-old Dalit girl was found hanging from a tree near Gujarat's Modasa town, the Special Investigation Team of the CID on 13 March concluded that she was neither raped nor murdered, as alleged by her family.
Members of the probe team said the girl ended her life after the main accused, Bimal Bharwad, refused to continue a romantic relations with her since he was married, reported Ahmedabad Mirror.
According to the report, DIG Gautam Parmar said the victim had first met the Bimal Bharwad on 17 December who engaged in a physical relationship with her. But because he was married, Bimal concocted a plan to get rid of her, the report said.
“So he concocted a plan to pass her on to his cousin Akash, so that he could blame her for infidelity and then dump her. However, this did not work and the girl threatened to expose him," Parmar said as per Ahmedabad Mirror report.
On 1 January, Bimal was seen leaving the girl at the Modasa town and driving off. The girl, as per the probe team members, went back to her village and hung herself. The accused has been charged with abetment to suicide.
The SIT also ruled out a case of kidnapping since they said the victim had called Bimal herself. The police also said that fluids from the vagina and rectal prolapse were due to the decomposition of the body.
However, the question remains on whereabouts of the girl from 1 to 5 January, when her body was found hanging. The probe team said they had no leads on that and are further investigating.
A police inspector was suspended for negligence of duty after the girl's family members claimed he delayed filing missing person complaint and adding relevant sections to the FIR after her death, because of caste prejudices.
Bimal and his three cousins, who are also accused in the case, belonged to the Rabari caste. Although Rabaris are largely categorised as Other Backward Class (OBCs) in Gujarat, Bimal’s family, which resides in the neighbouring village, owns considerable land and enjoys political clout.
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