Lynching of rape accused reflects people's anger: Sena

Mumbai, Mar 9: Even as the Centre has sought a report from Nagaland government over the lynching of a rape accused in Dimapur, its ally Shiv Sena today tried to justify the mob fury, saying it reflects the people's anger towards sexual crimes against women.

The Sena also said what should have ideally been the fate of perpetrators of December 16 Delhi gangrape, has happened in Nagaland.

"The people of Nagaland have long been protesting the illegal migration from Bangladesh. But their protests were ignored. In the middle of this unrest came up this rape incident...This incident made people lose their patience...it is only a result of people's anger against increasing sexual crimes," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said.

The Sena also said that it would be a mockery to term the lynching incident as a law and order failure, when the government does not bat an eyelid at the rise in sexual crimes against women. "It is said that the lynching and hanging of the person in public was a result of the failure of law machinery.

This in itself is a joke...The government does not think of the deteriorating law and order situation when hapless women are raped, but thinks about it when a rape accused in punished in public," it said.

The Sena further said what should have ideally been the fate of perpetrators of December 16 Delhi gangrape, has happened in Nagaland. "What should have happened in Delhi, has happened in Nagaland. The accused in the December 16 gangrape case are presently in Tihar jail and international news channels are showing their lives on TV as if they are actors," it said.

Criticising the slow progress in rape cases, it said, "Our judicial system works at a snail's pace when it comes to rape cases. However strong the case may be, we can never be sure if the rapist will be hanged. And if the accused is a minor, he is sent to a remand home where in the name of humanity, all kinds of facilities are provided to him."

Before terming the lynching of the rape accused in Dimapur as "a Talibani style of functioning," one should think as to what compelled the people to take law into their own hands, it said. The accused, Syed Farid Khan, had been arrested for allegedly raping a woman in Dimapur on February 24 and remanded in judicial custody the next day.

On March 5, a mob broke into the Dimapur Central Jail jail, dragged him out, stripped him naked, beat him up, pelted him with stones and dragged him towards the centre of Dimapur town. Khan succumbed to his injuries on the way after which the mob displayed his body at a clock tower.

PTI