JAIPUR: The last eight of those who stood trial in the Roop Kanwar " sati glorification " case in Rajasthan, involving the immolation of an 18-year-old widow allegedly forced to die on her husband's pyre in 1987, were acquitted Wednesday by a court that deemed the evidence against them inadequate for a conviction.
The ruling comes 36 years after police brought charges of glorifying sati against the accused, based on their probe of circumstances in which Roop Kanwar immolated herself in Deorala village and the events that followed.
The acquittals mark the end of a lengthy trial that saw 25 of the 45 accused being let off in 2004 for want of conclusive evidence. "We will appeal the acquittals in the HC," special public prosecutor Rajneesh Kumar Sharma said.
Mahendra Singh, Shravan Singh, Nihal Singh, Jitendra Singh, Uday Singh, Narayan Singh, Bhanwar Singh and Dashrath Singh were among the 45 arrested in 1988, a year after Roop Kanwar's death. Four of the accused were declared absconding after they jumped bail. Eight died during the course of the trial.
The 25 accused acquitted two decades ago included former ministers Rajendra Rathore of BJP and Pratap Singh Khachariyawas of Congress.
After Roop Kanwar's 24-year-old husband, Maal Singh Shekhawat, died of illness, relatives and the local community allegedly pushed her into following a practice that the British governor general William Bentinck had outlawed in 1829. The young woman's death sparked outrage across the country and led to the enactment of Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987, which made even glorification of the practice a punishable offence.
A year later, on Sept 22, 1988, police intercepted a truck ferrying 45 people from Deorala to Ajitgarh, also in Sikar district. They were shouting "Sati mata ki jai", which amounted to glorification of the banned practice. Under Section 5 of the legislation, anyone held guilty of glorifying sati is liable for a jail term of not less than a year, which may extend to seven years, along with a fine ranging between Rs 5,000 and Rs 30,000.
In 1996, all 32 accused in the main Roop Kanwar case, charged with her murder in name of sati, were acquitted due to insufficient evidence.
The ruling comes 36 years after police brought charges of glorifying sati against the accused, based on their probe of circumstances in which Roop Kanwar immolated herself in Deorala village and the events that followed.
The acquittals mark the end of a lengthy trial that saw 25 of the 45 accused being let off in 2004 for want of conclusive evidence. "We will appeal the acquittals in the HC," special public prosecutor Rajneesh Kumar Sharma said.
Mahendra Singh, Shravan Singh, Nihal Singh, Jitendra Singh, Uday Singh, Narayan Singh, Bhanwar Singh and Dashrath Singh were among the 45 arrested in 1988, a year after Roop Kanwar's death. Four of the accused were declared absconding after they jumped bail. Eight died during the course of the trial.
The 25 accused acquitted two decades ago included former ministers Rajendra Rathore of BJP and Pratap Singh Khachariyawas of Congress.
After Roop Kanwar's 24-year-old husband, Maal Singh Shekhawat, died of illness, relatives and the local community allegedly pushed her into following a practice that the British governor general William Bentinck had outlawed in 1829. The young woman's death sparked outrage across the country and led to the enactment of Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987, which made even glorification of the practice a punishable offence.
A year later, on Sept 22, 1988, police intercepted a truck ferrying 45 people from Deorala to Ajitgarh, also in Sikar district. They were shouting "Sati mata ki jai", which amounted to glorification of the banned practice. Under Section 5 of the legislation, anyone held guilty of glorifying sati is liable for a jail term of not less than a year, which may extend to seven years, along with a fine ranging between Rs 5,000 and Rs 30,000.
In 1996, all 32 accused in the main Roop Kanwar case, charged with her murder in name of sati, were acquitted due to insufficient evidence.
