Major Crimes That Stunned the Nation in 2017

Here is a list of major incidents of crime which made headlines this year.

(Image: Harsh Sahni/The Quint)

Four Members of a Family Gangraped In Jewar

On 25 May, eight members of a family were waylaid while they were on their way to Bulandshahr in UP. One man was killed and four women of the family were raped.(Photo: The Quint)

• 25 May: Four women of a family were gangraped and a man shot on the highway in Jewar in UP.
• 26 May: Police claimed no rape based on preliminary medical report.
• 5 June: One of the rape victims attempted suicide.
• 23 July: Four people were arrested. All were members of the Bawariya gang.
• 28 August: One more accused was arrested. He too belonged to the same gang.

Also Read: “I’m 60 Years Old But I Wasn’t Spared Either”: Jewar Rape Survivor

Junaid Lynched on a Train

The Quint travelled on the the same train that Junaid took from Sadar Bazar to Asaoti. (Photo: The Quint)

• 22 June: Sixteen-year-old Hafiz Junaid was lynched and four others were injured while they were on-board a Mathura-bound train, after an argument over a seat turned to religious slurs and triggered a mob attack.
• 29 June: Four people were arrested under charges of murder and inciting a mob, of which two were employees of the Delhi Government.
• 8 July: The main accused, Naresh Kumar, who allegedly stabbed Junaid with a knife, was arrested.
• 26 October: Junaid’s father filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court demanding a CBI probe.
• 5 December: The Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed the trial in the matter and sent a notice to the Haryana government seeking a reply on Junaid’s family’s demand for CBI probe.

Junaid’s killing instilled fear among several minority community members of being attacked for being a Muslim.

Also Read: Junaid’s Lynching: Taking the Train Ride That Ended in a Murder

Nowhatta Mob Lynching

Deputy Superintendent of Police Mohammed Ayub Pandith. (Photo: The Quint)

• 23 June: Deputy Superintendent of Police, Jammu & Kashmir, Mohammad Ayub Pandith, was lynched by a mob outside Jamia Masjid at Nowhatta Chowk in Srinagar. He was allegedly attacked because he was clicking pictures of stone pelters.
• 24 June : J&K Police formed a Special Investigative Team to probe the lynching and arrested five persons.

Lynching of a police officer while on duty by locals spreads shockwaves across the security forces. It also raised concerns on how safe security force officers are when they are on duty in conflict zones.

Ten-Year-Old Rape Survivor Got Pregnant

Representative image. (Photo: The Quint/Athar Rather)

• 14 July: A case registered in Chandigarh against maternal uncle for raping a 10-year-old child. She was 25 weeks pregnant after repeated rapes.
• 18 July: Chandigarh district court dismisses the abortion plea of minor citing medical reasons.
• 28 July: Supreme Court dismissed abortion plea of minor citing medical reasons
• 17 August: Minor rape survivor delivers a baby girl.
• 25 August: Chargesheet filed
• 12 September: DNA tests confirmed that the accused didn’t father the newborn.
• 10 October: DNA matched with her second uncle. The girl was raped by two uncles.
• 23 November: A family came forward to adopt the newborn.

Apart from being a shocking incident, the case was legally and medically complicated. The victim was left with no choice but to continue with her pregnancy after a medical panel informed the Supreme Court that an abortion will endanger both the girl and her 32-week-old foetus.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Convicted of Rape

Gurmeet Ram Rahim and Honeypreet Insan. Image used for representational purposes.(Photo: The Quint)

• 25 August: CBI Special Court in Panchkula, Haryana, convicted Gurmeet Ram Rahim in two rape cases. In 2002, anonymous letters were addressed to the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, alleging sexual exploitation of women followers at the Dera Sacha Sauda in Sirsa.
• 25 August: Violence escalated in the state with supporters of Ram Rahim running amok across Haryana, Punjab and the national capital New Delhi. Media was targeted in the violence.
• 26 August: Haryana Police registered an FIR against Gurmeet’s adopted daughter Honeypreet and several others under charges of sedition, conspiracy to help Gurmeet escape from court, and inciting violence.
• 28 August: Ram Rahim sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment in two rape cases.
• 3 October: Honeypreet arrested after absconding for over a month.

Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh’s conviction brought to the limelight the nexus between so-called spiritual gurus and politicians.

Journalist Gauri Lankesh Murder

Gauri Lankesh was gunned down outside her Bengaluru home.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook)

• 5 September: Gauri Lankesh, editor of Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada weekly, assassinated outside her home.
• 6 September: A Special Investigative Team (SIT) formed to probe the case.
• 6 September: Protest march organised by journalists in several cities
• 14 October: SIT releases three sketches of two suspects after analysing CCTV footage and on the statements of witnesses.

There is no clarity yet on the identity of the murderer. The case opened a discussion on freedom of speech and safety of journalists.

Ryan International School Murder Case

Too many questions remain unanswered in the Pradyumn Thakur murder case.(Photo: Liju Joseph/The Quint)

• 8 September: A seven-year-old boy, Pradyumn Thakur, was found in a pool of blood after his throat was slit inside the washroom of Ryan International School in Gurugram.
• 9 September: Haryana Police arrested the school bus conductor, Ashok Kumar. Police claimed he confessed to killing Pradyumn after attempting to sexually assault him.
• 15 September: Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar handed over the case to the CBI after the victim’s family trashed the Haryana Police’s probe.
• October 7: The Punjab and Haryana High Court granted bail to Ryan International Group CEO Ryan Pinto, and his parents founding chairman Augustine Pinto and managing director Grace Pinto.
• 8 November: CBI creates a major twist in the probe by arresting a 16-year-old student from the same school. The juvenile allegedly killed Pradyumn because he wanted to postpone exams and the parent teacher meeting.
• 21 November: The CBI court in Gurugram granted bail to bus conductor Ashok Kumar. CBI informed the court that there was no evidence so far against Kumar.

Murder of a 7-year-old inside school moved every parent across the country who thought that their child is safe in school. For probably the first time, several parents wenty to their children’s school to carry out physical inspection on safety measures. Victim’s family filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking formulation of stringent guidelines on school safety.

British Paedophile

4 September: Delhi Police arrested a 54-year-old British man, Murray Ward, for sexually abusing three visually impaired children under the care of National Association for Blind for the last nine years. He was teaching at as well giving donations to this institution.

Man Chopped His Friend Into Pieces and Refrigerated Them

14 October: A bartender, Vipin Joshi’s body found in multiple pieces inside a refrigerator at his colleague’s home in Delhi.

22 October: The accused Badal Mandal was arrested from Rourkela. Accused said the victim had an affair with his wife.

Student Raped In School For 5 years

• 20 October: Parents of a 11-year-old filed a complaint of sexual assault in Greater Noida. The FIR said that the boy had been sexually assaulted by a member of the school staff for almost five years inside the school.
• 24 October: The police arrested accused Ashok Mishra, who was looking after the administration of the school.
• 25 October: The victim’s mother complained that the police was taking no action against the school. Till now police has only booked Mishra under the POCSO Act.

Four-Year-Old Raped Inside School

• 30 November: A four-year-old student of a popular south Kolkata school was sexually abused by her teachers inside the school’s toilet.
• 1 December: Two school teachers were arrested by the police after the victim identified them.

Rajasthan’s On Camera Murder

Screenshots from the video of Shambhulal Regar hacking Afrazul, before pouring kerosene over him and setting him ablaze in Rajasthan.(Photo Courtesy: YouTube screengrab)

• 7 December: Horrifying videos went viral showing Shambunath Raigar killing and burning Mohammed Afrazul in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan.
• December 7: Shambunath surrendered before the police. He said that Afrazul eloped with a Hindu girl and he brought her back to the family. Police detained Shambunath’s 15-year-old nephew who filmed the video.
• December 7: Afrazul’s family demanded death for the accused.

First the killer recorded the murder on mobile phone camera, then circulated on social media and later surrendered before the cops giving it a colour of love-jihad. But the story didn’t end here, several people on social media came forward to financially assist the murderer. This incident exposed the dangerous mindset prevailing among many in the name of Hindutva.

‘Godman’ Who Wanted to Rape 16,000 Women

Image used for representational purposes. 

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook/BHU Buzz)

• 20 December: Following the Delhi High Court’s order based on a petition, the Delhi Police carried out a raid at Adhyatmik Vishwa Vidyalaya where minor girls and women were sexually assaulted and were kept in confinement for over 14 years by self-styled godman Virendra Dev Dixit. Police rescued 41 rape survivors. Dixit is absconding.
• 22 December: It was found that the 'godman' was booked in four gang-rape cases as far back as in 1998 in Farrukhabad district.
• December 23: One of the rape suvivors reportedly said that she was raped several times by Dixit. She said Dixit always told her that she is one of his 16,000 ranis (queens).