Dalit woman fought for justice for 7 years, court convicted Congress leader Achhan Khan and sentenced him to life imprisonment
Lucknow: A special court in Ambedkar Nagar on Saturday sentenced former Congress Seva Dal official Achhan Khan (50 years) to life imprisonment for raping a Dalit woman – who was his colleague. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 22,000 on the accused. In case of not paying the fine, he will have to undergo an additional imprisonment of three months.
Special Judge (SC/ST Act) Ram Vilas Singh convicted Achhan Khan under sections 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and sections of the Scheduled Castes/Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. This verdict comes almost seven years after the incident when the first complaint of sexual harassment was lodged.
According to Special Public Prosecutor Sudeep Mishra, the victim, who was a grassroots worker of the Congress, alleged that Achchan Khan barged into her house on the evening of September 12, 2018 and raped her. The victim told the court that the accused, who knew her from party work, physically grabbed her, used casteist slurs and threatened to kill her if she told anyone.
The victim said she pleaded for justice — lodged a complaint at the Akhbarpur police station and also approached the then Superintendent of Police — but no action was taken. Neither an FIR was registered, nor was a medical examination conducted.
The woman also alleged that on September 17, 2020, Achchan Khan called her to Haria area in Basakhri police station area and raped her again. This time, the accused took objectionable photographs of her and threatened to make them viral on the internet if she approached the law. The victim says that one such semi-nude photo was in fact circulated on social media, causing further mental trauma to her.
Frustrated by the police’s continued negligence, the victim sent a registered complaint to the Ambedkar Nagar SP on October 31, 2020, but received no response. She then approached the local court, which directed the Basakheri police to register an FIR. The case was registered on September 20, 2021, and the chargesheet was filed on January 28, 2022.
Public Prosecutor Mishra said, “The victim’s detailed and consistent testimony in court formed the strong basis of the prosecution.” He further said, “Despite the initial negligence of the police, we ensured a conviction on the basis of her testimony and available evidence.”
The court also observed that the delay in the police not taking the complaint seriously did affect the investigation, but it did not affect the credibility of the victim.
Courtesy : Rajan Chaudhary, Hindi News