3 youths acquitted of abducting Mizo girl

Three youths facing trial for allegedly abducting a 19-year-old Mizo girl with the intention to rape her were acquitted by a Delhi court due to her failure to identify them as accused.

Additional Sessions Judge Yogesh Khanna let off Delhi residents Pranav Chandi Ramani, Aayush Chhabra and Rahil Kamal arrested on June 23 this year, saying they are entitled to the "benefit of doubt" as the girl did not level any allegation against any one of them.

"The prosecutrix herself had not levelled any allegation against any of the accused and even failed to identify them in the court saying they were not the same three boys from whom she had taken lift in their car.

"The statement under section 313 CrPC of the accused was also dispensed with as the girl did not level any allegation against any one of them. Hence, the accused are entitled to the benefit of doubt and acquittal," the court observed, while ordering their release from jail.

The police had arrested the trio, two students and the third a private firm's executive, after the girl on June 20 had lodged a complaint with the police alleging that the three had misbehaved with her while she took a lift in their car from outside a club at Vasant Kunj in South West Delhi.

The police had said the three were arrested on the basis of the CCTV footage from the club.

"I have perused the statements recorded by the police and the magistrate. The names of the boys are not mentioned in her statement," it said.

"She had rather deposed that she had taken a lift from the said three boys and that those three boys were not the accused persons.

"So, it would not be sufficient to convict them as the prosecutrix had not deposed against any of the accused that she was abducted by them or that she was subjected to sexual harassment by these accused in the moving car," the court said.