Court acquits rape accused after victim turns hostile

According to the prosecution,in July last year,the victim had hired Ashrafali’s taxi in Matunga at 5 in the morning. The victim alleged that Ashrafali along with his accomplice took her to an unknown place and raped her repeatedly. The matter was registered at the Matunga Police Station and the police arrested Ashrafali. The other accused remains unidentified and is still at large.

The investigating officer who had carried out the investigation abstained from the court proceedings making it easy for the defence to build a strong case before the court.

Defence lawyer Khan Abdul Wahab said,“My client Asrafali was in jail throughout the trial and was repeatedly denied bail. With no medical reports and absence of the investigating officer,the prosecution failed to prove any charges against him.”

Additional ad-hoc Sessions judge S Jamkhedkar acquitted Ashrafali of all the charges after the victim retracted her testimony several times before the court and declared her hostile.