SC Takes Suo Motu Cognisance Of Delhi-NCR Rape Cases, Draws Parallels To Nirbhaya Case

The Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognisance of rape cases reported in Delhi-NCR, including a gang rape in a park near Kalkaji Temple and the alleged sexual assault of a minor inside a moving sleeper bus in Delhi. Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran sat on the bench and expressed concern over the cases. The judges were distressed by the repeated sexual assault cases in the National Capital Region and said accountability must be fixed.

LiveLaw reported that the court’s intervention came amid recurring sexual offences in the region. The bench noted four rape cases involving minors reported in the national capital over the past two weeks and warned that parks and buses cannot be allowed to become “zones of high risk” because of inadequate lighting, surveillance and other administrative facilities.

Court’s Strong Remarks

Referring to the alleged gang-rape of a teenage girl in a moving sleeper bus from Greater Noida’s Pari Chowk to Delhi’s Kashmere Gate, where police failed to intercept the vehicle during its 47-kilometre journey, the court said: “One cannot help but draw painful parallels to the Nirbhaya incident of 2012.”

The court also said the incidents “cannot help but draw parallels to the Nirbhaya case”. It further said: “These incidents considered alongside other recent reports of sexual offences across Delhi-NCR starkly underline a systematic failure on the part of the law enforcement and the public administrative authorities to guarantee basic public safety.”

Bus Assault Details

The assault occurred on August 4 and was reported on September 2. A 17-year-old travelling from Mainpuri allegedly boarded the bus at Pari Chowk after being misled about its destination.

Police said the assault happened near Bakhtawarpur and the girl was later left near Kashmere Gate. Kuldeep, the driver, and Sandeep, the conductor, were arrested within four hours. In an update on September 22, The Indian Express reported that investigators were still probing the case, with biological samples sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory and a fast-tracked report sought.

Kalkaji Park Case

The Kalkaji case followed separately.

The FIR says three men who posed as police assaulted a 17-year-old and beat her friend in Aastha Kunj Park on September 21. Police arrested all three on September 22. A court then sent them to 14 days’ judicial custody on September 25.

The police had recorded 12 witness statements by September 25-27. They also reported that the accused’s phones were sent for forensic examination. Police said a gun, knife and condoms were recovered from Asif and that conspiracy provisions had been added to the FIR.