Kathua rape: Pathankot court frames charges against seven
Pathankot, June 7: A court in this Punjab town on Thursday framed charges against seven accused in the rape and murder case of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district.
The district and sessions court here framed charges against seven of the eight accused. The trial of the case, which was shifted from Jammu and Kashmir to here following orders of the Supreme Court, began on May 31.
The seven -- alleged mastermind Sanji Ram, his son Vishal Jangotra, Vishal's friend from Rasana village, a sub-inspector of police, a head constable and two special police officers (SPOs) -- were shifted to Pathankot on May 31.
The eighth accused is a juvenile and his trial is being held separately in Kathua.
The trial was shifted to Pathankot on the plea of the victim's father.
The apex court also directed the District and Sessions Judge, Pathankot to hold the trial in-camera on a daily basis without any adjournment.
The eight-year-old girl was abducted, held prisoner in a religious place, repeatedly raped and brutally murdered.
Two senior ministers of the ruling PDP-BJP coalition had to resign following their participation in a rally in favour of the accused.
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Curbs on movement, assembly remain in force in Kashmir after protests against Khamenei's killing
Srinagar (PTI): Normal life in Kashmir was affected for the fifth consecutive day as partial restrictions on movement of people remained in force as a precautionary measure.
The restrictions were imposed on Monday after spontaneous protests broke out across Kashmir a day earlier against the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israel joint strikes.
Chief minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday held a meeting with civil society representatives and religious leaders as part of efforts to bring the situation back to normalcy.
ALSO READ: Protests against Khamenei's killing: Curbs remain in force in Kashmir
After the meeting, Abdullah appealed to people to maintain peace while expressing grief and anger in "mosques, shrines and Imambaras".
The government has shut educational institutions till Saturday, and reduced mobile internet speeds.
"Restrictions on the movement and assembly of the people continued in many parts of Kashmir on Thursday," the officials said.
A large number of police and paramilitary CRPF personnel were deployed across the city to prevent gatherings of protestors, the officials said.
They added that concertina wires and barricades were placed at important intersections leading into the city, while asserting that these were precautionary measures imposed to maintain law and order.
The iconic Ghanta Ghar in the city centre of Lal Chowk here continued to remain a no-go zone after the authorities sealed area with barricades erected all around it on late Sunday night.
The move to seal the Ghanta Ghar came after it witnessed massive protests on Sunday after Khamenei's assassination in the joint air strikes by the US and Israel.
This is the first time since August 2019 -- when Article 370 was revoked -- that protests on such a large scale have taken place in Kashmir.
