A special court in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday, March 2 acquitted three out of the four accused in the 2020 Hathras rape and murder case. Ravi (35), Luv Kush (23) and Ramu (26) are the three men who have been acquitted, while Sandeep, the prime accused, has been found guilty under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Mahipal Singh, the advocate representing the victim’s family told journalists outside the court that that there are no charges of rape on any of the accused. He also added that they will approach the Allahabad High Court against the decision of the local court.
On September 14, 2020, a 19-year-old Dalit woman was gangraped and murdered by four dominant caste Thakur men in her village in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh.The police reportedly cremated her body at night without the consent of her family, who had wished to see her one last time and bring her body back home. The case caused widespread outrage and sparked protests across India, with people demanding justice for the victim and stricter laws to prevent sexual violence against women.