The death of a 19-year-old Dalit girl from Hathras in UP, after alleged gangrape by upper caste men and the incidents that followed, including the secret cremation of the body and the attempts at cover-up by the police and the administration, have reminded the country of the Nirbhaya episode in Delhi in 2012. The incident has touched a painful chord among people across the country, and there is widespread outrage over it. The handling of the crime by the state authorities has evoked strong protests. Everything about it went wrong and this is considered to be deliberate and part of a pattern that has been seen in the responses of the authorities to lawless actions in the state. The state’s responses to crime have themselves been lawless and they have aggravated the situation. This is at the root of the revulsion and anger among large sections of people in the country.
The mishandling of the crime, the possible destruction of evidence, the inexplicable action of cremation of the body without the consent and presence of the family, the siege of the village by the police, reports of threats by government officials and the police and prevention of the media and opposition leaders from reaching the village have all helped to create the impression that the police and the administration have much to hide about the incident. The initial response of the police was especially dubious. There are reports that forensic samples were not analysed in time and so doubts have arisen about the forensic report now. The hurried cremation is thought to have been an attempt to destroy evidence. There is suspicion that the gang rape charge may not stick, in spite of the girl’s dying declaration which said that she was raped.
The state government has suspended some police officials in a delayed response, after the uproar and the protests. It has also announced a CBI investigation and some compensation to the family. But the government should have acted immediately after the incident instead of reacting to the events. The Allahabad High Court has suo motu taken cognisance of the case as it involves ‘’allegation of high-handedness by the state authorities, resulting in violation of basic human and fundamental rights’’. The steps taken by the government have not satisfied the members of the family too, who have demanded a court-monitored investigation instead of a CBI probe. There is a case for this as the family’s sentiments and views are important in such a situation. The Hathras incident has again tellingly exposed the callous culture of highhandedness and impunity, and other faultiness in UP’s society and administration, which have steadily deepened over time.