Rape convict booked for attack on union leader in Faridkot jail
Kirti Kisan Union leader Rajinder Singh, lodged in jail, had held protests against Nishan Singh, serving life term in 2012 Faridkot minor’s abduction-rape case
Police on Tuesday booked 18 persons, including Nishan Singh, who is serving life sentence in the 2012 Faridkot minor’s abduction and rape case, for attacking Kirti Kisan Union state vice-president Rajinder Singh in the central jail here on Monday.
However, the police only named Nishan Singh in the first information report (FIR) while the other 17 persons are unidentified.
Rajinder Singh, who was lodged in Faridkot jail, was brutally attacked by some inmates on Monday evening, after which he was admitted to Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital (GGMCH) at Faridkot, where his condition is stated to be stable.
Rajinder had reportedly played a crucial role in the agitation against Nishan after the Faridkot minor’s abduction and rape in 2012.
The union leader was recently arrested after a clash between police and protesters during a demonstration over sexual harassment allegations against the head of a department of GGSMCH. Later, he was sent in judicial custody in a case registered against him on August 2, 2018 when he was leading an agitation regarding fee increase in government colleges and the post-matric scholarship scheme.
Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manjit Singh Dhesi said a case has been registered against Nishan Singh and 17 unidentified persons on the complaint of Rajinder.
He said the case has been registered under Section 341 (wrongful restraint), 323(voluntarily causing hurt), 148 (armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 52 of Prisons Act.
Meanwhile, members of Anti-Sexual Harassment Action Committee and other social organisations held a protest over the attack on the union leader.
“Rajinder has been arrested in a false case and the attack was carried out on the behest of officials. The action committee has already warned jail authorities on December 12 that Rajinder was not safe in the jail, but they did nothing,” said action committee member Manga Singh Azad.