By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: In an interesting series of developments, the police were forced to arrest the members of the local village Dorbar of Nohron for refusing to hand over an accused who was allegedly involved in raping a 14-year-old girl.
The members of the local Dorbar of Nohron village near Jongksha in East Khasi Hills were put inside the lock up on Monday night after they failed to surrender the rape accused Moon Sumer (31) despite an agreement with the police that they would do so.
According to sources, the local village Dorbar had signed an agreement with the police to surrender the accused within a week’s time.
Sources on Tuesday informed that East Khasi Hills Superintendent of Police AR Mawthoh was annoyed over the behaviour of the members of the local Dorbar including the Sordar.
When they refused to hand over the accused, sources said that the Superintendent of Police, East Khasi Hills directed the police to put the members of the local village Dorbar in the lock up till they surrendered the accused.
After they were arrested, sources revealed that the villagers finally surrendered the accused at Madanriting police station at around 11 pm.
The police later released the members of the local village Dorbar after the accused was surrender, sources informed.
Meanwhile, sources also informed that the accused had raped the 14 year old girl of the same village on a numerous of occasions.
The family members of the victim came to know about the rape only after the 14 year-old girl was three months pregnant, sources said.
Sources revealed that the relatives filed the FIR with the police only last week after the child died in the mother’s womb. “The family members filed the FIR on the advice of the doctors,” sources said.
After the FIR was filed, police went to the village to arrest the accused.
“Police could not arrest the accused since they were chased away by the villagers who were led by the Sordar of the village,” sources informed.
The village Dorbar told the police they would take action on their own, sources said.
The village signed the agreement to hand over the accused only after the police threatened to take drastic action, sources added. Meanwhile, during the interrogation, police sources informed that the accused had maintained that it was consensual sex. The 14 year old school girl is from Siatsim, Jaintia Hills. She was raped by one Small Phawa at Riat Siatsim, Jowai on November 30, 2011.
As per the FIR lodged by the family of the victim, the girl was raped by Phawa while she had accompanied her younger brother to the toilet.
The family also complained that Phawa, who was regarded as an uncle by the girl, called her and dragged her inside a vehicle, put on loud music and then raped her.
It may be mentioned a section of NGOs had tried to protect the accused by helping him to get anticipatory bail from the court.