Not an iota of evidence: 70-year-old acquitted in a 40-year-old kidnapping and rape case

MUMBAI: The sessions court on Tuesday acquitted a 70-year-old man – Dawood Bandu Khan alias Papa, arrested by the Mumbai police in May this year on charges of alleged rape and kidnap of a minor girl, who is now Khan’s wife, thus bringing a 40-year-old case to an end.
The case was registered at the DB Marg police station in 1984 based on a complaint filed by Khan’s mother-in-law. According to the complaint, the girl, who has now passed away, had stepped out of her house to attend a nature call, but she never returned. The DB Marg police subsequently registered a case against Khan under sections 363 (punishment for kidnapping) and 376 (punishment for sexual assault) of the Indian Penal Code following a complaint lodged by the minor’s mother.
The court, while acquitting Khan, observed that there was not an iota of evidence to connect Khan with the crime. Khan had allegedly shifted to Agra after the case was registered and had been absconding since 1986, following which a non-bailable warrant was issued against him.
His advocate submitted that he was falsely implicated in the case. The complainant and the victim were no longer alive. The court relied on the statement given by the cousin sister of the victim, a prime witness, who told the court that Khan and the girl were involved in a romantic relationship known to all the family members, adding that they had run away together and gotten married subsequently. The duo had four children who all were residing at Agra, she said, adding that two of their children had passed away as well.
The court noted that the prosecution had failed to bring any documentary evidence which would prove that the girl was a minor at the relevant time, as her birth was not registered with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. The case came to the sessions court between 1984-1985, said the court, adding that the maximum witnesses of the prosecution were either untraceable or had passed away.
“The matter is too old. The accused is in custody. Therefore, top priority is given to dispose of the matter,” said additional sessions judge Madhuri M Deshpande, adding, “There is not an iota of evidence on record to show that the accused kidnapped the minor girl and committed forcible sexual intercourse with her.”
Observing that the accused was entitled to acquittal, the court observed, “It cannot be said that the prosecution has succeeded in establishing the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt for the aforementioned offences.”
When Khan was arrested in May this year, the police traced him through a designer and a shop owner who had supplied clothes and sweets for his son’s wedding. The officials, after enquiring at Khan’s old place in Grant Road, got to know about the marriage and traced the designer and shop owner who gave the officials the ten-year-old mobile number of Khan. The police arrested him and brought him to the city.
Khan had allegedly fled with the girl from Girgaum to Agra in 1984, after which the duo began living together. However, a charge sheet was filed against Khan in 1985 after which he remained untraceable. The sessions court later issued a proclamation against him.