The News Minute | June 17, 2014 | 04:49 pm IST
Nihal Chand, Union minister of state Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, is battling fresh accusations in a 2011 sexual assault case. This time, the victim herself has come out to the media, alleging that Chand is threatening and pressurising her and her family to withdraw the case.
While speaking to Times Now, the victim claimed that her life was under constant threat. Nihal Chand had sent a person to her village offering her a job and money and demanding her to take back the case. “Jo ho gaya so ho gaya, uska naam nikal do bahar”, (Let bygones be bygones, take back his name), the person had told her. “If he was innocent, then he wouldn’t have had the need to say this”, she says. See the full report here: Nihal Chand case: Rape victim under threat, appeals to Modi
She fears for her life and also of her family. She shifts locations constantly in order to protect them. “They can kill me or hurt my family”, she tells the correspondent.
Appealing to the Prime Minister, the victim hopes that justice will be served.
Chand has chosen to remain silent on the issue till now. In another report carried by Times Now, it is suggested that Chand has BJP’s full support. . Chand is however not new to getting embroiled in controversies. Earlier he was also accused by the Congress for having been made false claims in his affidavit. The Congress is now demanding Nihal Chand to resign from his post as MP. See the full report here: Minister’s man met me, offered job: Rape victim
A Jaipur court on June 12 had issued a notice to Nihal Chand and 16 others accused in a November 2011 rape case.
The woman, who hails from Haryana’s Sirsa, had lodged a complaint against 16 people, including her husband and Chand, for sexually exploiting her in 2011.
A police investigation was done and a closure report was filed by the police in December 2012. The woman challenged the final report of the police alleging that the investigation was not fair considering the involvement of several influential people.
She had filed a petition again in 2013, but the final police report was accepted in February 2014 over her charges. Shen then filed a review petition and the additional district judge has now asked all the accused to respond to the notice and clarify their stand by August 20.
Nihal Chand is the only MP from Rajasthan in Narendra Modi’s council of ministers.