Pratapgarh incident: CM Gehlot meets victim, announces Rs 10 lakh assistance and govt job

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has announced financial assistance of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for the woman who was stripped and paraded by her husband and others in Pratapgarh district, an official statement said on Saturday.

He met the victim and her family in Dhariyawad in Pratapgarh on Saturday afternoon.

The opposition BJP has targeted the Congress government over the incident that occurred on Thursday, accusing it of failing to contain crimes against women in the state.

Hitting back at the BJP, Gehlot highlighted the recent incident in the BJP-ruled Manipur wherein two women from one of the warring communities were paraded naked by a few men from the other side. A May 4 video of the incident had surfaced online in July.

Gehlot said his government took action in the Pratapgarh incident in a timely manner whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not even aware of the Manipur incident for over two months.

''I would like to ask the prime minister... when the civil war was going on in Manipur, when two women were paraded naked in the presence of police and raped why did you come to know about it after two months," Gehlot told reporters in Dhariyawad.

He also said that both the ruling and the opposition party should condemn the inhuman incident of Dhariyawad in one voice so that a message goes to society that such matters should not be politicised.

Gehlot expressed grief over the Pratapgarh incident and said 10 accused have been arrested so far and if it is found during the investigation that more people were involved, strict action will be taken against them as well During his meeting with the victim, Gehlot consoled and assured her that the administration and the state government were with her.

Calling the woman the ''daughter of Rajasthan'', he said, "She is from a very poor tribal family and I am saddened to see their condition" as he announced financial assistance of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for her.

He said Rajasthan is a state where the accused are caught soon after they commit a crime.

Gehlot said that the criminals will be given the strictest punishment by prosecuting them in a fast-track court, the statement said.

He said that such incidents and criminals have no place in a civilised society. ''Such tragic and inhuman incidents should be condemned in one voice,'' Gehlot said.

The chief minister said that ''prevention of crimes against women is our top priority''.

''In the Pratapgarh incident, the act of the in-laws owing to a dispute with the woman's family is highly condemnable,'' Gehlot said, noting that as soon as the incident came to the notice, ADG Crime was directed to go to the spot and take strict action.

''Police took swift action and detained all the accused within a few hours,'' the chief minister said.

Director General of Police Umesh Mishra said that the incident was a fallout of a matrimonial dispute.

After a video of the incident appeared on social media, a case was registered against 10 accused under relevant sections of the IPC and IT Act.