Saksham Patel, the third accused in the gang rape of a B.Tech student in IIT-BHU, Varanasi, got bail from the Allahabad High Court. Apart from rape, in the charge sheet filed under the Gangster Act, the police had considered Saksham Patel as a vicious criminal, but the police did not stop his bail in the court.
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Saksham Patel was released on Monday on the orders of the court. Saksham also appeared before the fast track court on Tuesday. After the call, while signing the court book, he also informed about his release. The three accused Kunal, Anand and Saksham had reached the court together in the morning and remained present in the court premises till late evening.
After the third accused got bail, the student took leave and went home. Let us tell you that four months before the release of two accused, bail had been accepted from Allahabad High Court, which included accused Kunal Pandey and Anand alias Abhishek Chauhan. Now, after the bail was rejected in the Gangster Court, Saksham has got bail from the High Court.
However, after Saksham got bail, the victim student has expressed anger. He has also raised questions on the accused continuously coming out of jail. After this she took leave from college and went home.
Let us tell you that all three accused of gang rape were associated with BJP IT cell. He was in touch with big leaders including government ministers and MLAs. In the high profile case, the police had filed the charge sheet of gangrape on January 17, 2024. The police had filed a case against all three accused under the Gangster Act. After the gangster case was registered, their bail pleas were continuously rejected but now all three are out on bail.
The police had described all three as professional criminals in the court. The three accused Anand, Kunal and Saksham were arrested on December 30, 2023, 60 days after the incident. All three accused were lodged in the district jail since December 31, 2023. He was kept in the barrack of the accused involved in heinous crimes. Police told the court that all three are professional criminals and they should not be allowed to go among the public.
In the police charge sheet, the route chart, CCTV footage and mobile location of the three accused were used as the basis. Along with this, the statements of the victim student, her friend and a guard have also been made the basis against the accused. The WhatsApp chat was also presented in the court and the seized bullet was also mentioned.
Varanasi court had rejected the petition of all three ADGC Manoj Gupta said that the hearing of the three accused of IIT-BHU gang rape is going on in Varanasi Fast Track Court (POCSO). In July, all three accused had filed bail petition in the court. On the opposition of the prosecution, the bail applications of the three accused Kunal, Anand alias Abhishek and Saksham were rejected.
This was not the first time but the court had rejected his petition twice before. The case against the accused and the police chargesheet itself were strong. After the petition was rejected, all of them took refuge in the High Court, from where two got bail. Gangrape accused Kunal Pandey’s house is in Brij Enclave Colony, while Saksham Patel and Anand’s houses are side by side.
First Anand then Kunal and now Saksham’s release After the petition was rejected in the Varanasi Fast Track Court, accused Anand first filed a bail petition in the High Court on 11 November 2023, on which the hearing was held several times and the date kept increasing. When Anand cited several reasons including the illness of his family, the court accepted the bail on July 2, 2024, but imposed several conditions.
As soon as Anand’s bail was accepted, the second accused Kunal also filed a bail petition in the High Court on July 2, 2024. On July 4, the court also accepted his bail, but due to the verification of the sureties, he could also be released on August 24.
After this, on July 4, the third accused Saksham Patel filed a bail application, on which the court granted bail in the gangrape case a few days later, but the gangster filed an objection. Now the petition of Saksham Patel in the gangster case was rejected by the division bench of the High Court on 16 September. After this he appealed in the double bench, where the court heard all the aspects and summoned the police report.
The police presented a weak report in the court, on which the prosecution’s argument also remained weak and due to lack of strong grounds, Saksham Patel got bail. When questions were raised, it was revealed that BJP leaders were lobbying against Saksham Patel and he was also said to be close to a strong BJP official from Kashi region.
Now know the sequence of actions, but first read what happened that night in BHU…
The girl student went out for a walk from the hostel when three boys surrounded her.
The B.Tech student living in the New Girls Hostel of IIT-BHU told the police in her complaint that she had gone out for a walk at 1:30 am on November 1/2, 2023. As he proceeded from the hostel, he met his friend near Gandhi Smriti Hostel. Both of them were walking towards Karman Veer Baba temple. About 300 meters ago a bullet came from behind. There were 3 boys riding on it. Those people stopped me and my friend by parking the bike.
After this they separated us. They pressed my mouth and took me to a corner. There he first kissed me forcibly and then made me remove my clothes. Made my video and took photos. When I screamed for help, they started threatening to kill me. Kept me under his control for about 10-15 minutes and then released him.
When I ran towards my hostel, the sound of a bike started coming from behind. Out of fear I entered a professor’s house. Stayed there for 20 minutes and called the professor. The professor dropped me at the gate. After that, Rahul Rathore of the Parliament Security Committee took me to the IIT-BHU patrolling guard. From where I was able to reach my hostel safely. Of the three accused, one was fat, the other was thin and the third was of medium height. (The accused were later identified through CCTV)
IIT-BHU gangrape victim asks for virtual hearing, tells judge she doesn’t want to see the accused
A year after the gangrape of a B.Tech student in IIT-BHU, Varanasi, the victim is angry in the court. The gang rape victim has been ‘waiting for justice’ for a year continuously. The student said in the letter given to the court through her lawyer – My examinations are going on. It is troublesome for me to travel to the court again and again from the campus. I am not even able to prepare for the exam. Coming to court again and again and confronting rape accused is becoming difficult. The victim has demanded virtual appearance in the case.
Statements of witnesses related to the incident are yet to be taken from the victim’s side. Complete statements of eyewitnesses, investigators, female teachers, female police personnel and officers in the case could not be obtained. The judge’s decision on the victim’s petition is expected on the next date i.e. December 12.
On August 22, the rape victim recorded her statement in the court.
Prosecution lawyer Manoj Gupta said that the court has expedited the hearing of the IIT-BHU gangrape case. The student was first called in the case by the court on August 22. The student was presented in the court under police protection. The student presented the BHU incident before the court. He told that the three accused brutalized, threatened and then fled away. She is also feeling many kinds of pressure after the incident. I feel scared going out, so I stay in the hostel most of the time.
Action taken so far in IIT-BHU gangrape case
Kunal Pandey and Anand alias Abhishek Chauhan, two accused of gang rape of a B.Tech student in IIT-BHU, were granted bail by the Allahabad High Court in August. The hearing on the bail plea of the third accused Saksham Patel is going on. When Anand reached his house in Nagwa Colony after bail, he was welcomed. Kunal was also welcomed by his family and relatives in Brij Enclave. All three accused of gangrape were associated with BJP IT cell. He was in touch with big leaders including government ministers and MLAs.
The student said – everything happened in the dark, still recognized 2
The student said- On November 4, ACP Praveen Kumar Singh had shown photos of the suspects in his mobile. Told me that these photos were collected through social media and surveillance locations. Whatever happened to me, happened in the dark of night. But still I recognized two accused and my friend recognized one accused. When I clarified the identity of the accused, the police was busy searching for them.
