Mumbai
Mumbai, August 18, 2011
The state has decided not to proceed with perjury charges against the domestic help of Bollywood actor Shiney Ahuja, convicted of rape, who had turned hostile during the trial after claiming that the actor had raped her.
Public prosecutor Kashinath Dige told the Hindustan Times that they did not intend to press perjury charges against the domestic help due to the trauma she has suffered so far. “She is a lady and has gone through enough humiliation,” said Dige.
“She had already suffered enough and should be pardoned. We don’t want to press the charges and make it difficult for her,” he added.
HT had first reported, on September 8,2010, that the domestic help had turned hostile during her deposition before the Sewri fast track court, trying the case. She had withdrawn her statement saying that Ahuja had not raped her and that she had filed the complaint at the behest of the woman who had help her get a job at Ahuja’s house.
Ahuja was convicted by the trial court on March 30 this year and sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment. He was then granted bail by the Bombay high court, where the actor’s appeal against the verdict is pending.
NCFM NOTE: Ahuja was convicted, sentenced to seven years, he’s free on bail while appealing the conviction. Prosecutor Kashinath Dige says the maid who made the false accusations will not have charges filed against her because she has suffered enough. There is no mention of any criminal charges being filed against another woman who may have had a vendetta against Ahuja and used the unnamed domestic helper as a weapon of revenge.
Sound simple doesn’t it? Well, if that’s all the information you had it’s easy to say the maid needs to go to jail along with anyone who may have put her up to lying and wrecking Ahuja’s life. But that’s not all there is to the story. Ahuja a year or so ago allegedly confessed to the rape! Until then he had maintained his innocence. Is it possible the confession was coerced. Yes, especially considering the political climate and criminal justice systems in India.
Whatever the case, according to the article above the maid will not be prosecuted. If the prosecutor believed the maid was truthful there would be no reason to consider prosecution for the reasons stated, that is she’s been through enough. It sounds as if the prosecutor believes she lied. If so, the possibility that Ahuja’s confession was coerced increases.
What does appear clear however is that one or more of these characters should be spending time behind bars. If the maid is lying and someone put her up to making the false accusations they should both be headed to prison and their names should be released to warn others that they are liars of the worse kind. If Ahuja is a rapist then he belongs behind bars. Not complicated.
However, not to prosecute a liar that caused an innocent person to go to prison is unconscionable. Prosecutor Kashinath Dige might benefit from spending a few months in prison too.
