Uber cab rape: Case to be dealt by special fast track court

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Monday took cognisance of the chargesheet filed against a driver of US-based cab service provider, Uber, for allegedly raping a 27-year-old woman executive in December last year. [caption id=“attachment_2030609” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Rape accused Uber cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav. PTI[/caption] Metropolitan Magistrate Ajay Kumar Malik committed the case to a sessions court for trial and posted the matter for 7 January. “Since the charge sheet has been filed, copies have been supplied to the accused and the present matter is exclusively triable by the sessions court, I take cognisance on the charge sheet and commit the case to sessions court for January 7,” the magistrate said. The court also extended the judicial custody of arrested accused Shiv Kumar Yadav, 32, till Wednesday. During the hearing, the court pulled up Yadav’s counsel for putting forward “useless arguments” and trying to unnecessarily delay the proceedings. The court dismissed a plea moved by the defence counsel seeking security for his client, saying, “There is no visible injury on the accused and the prosecuting authority are doing their work very well.” Yadav, who was driving the cab, had allegedly raped the woman on the night of 5 December, last year when the victim, who works for a finance company in Gurgaon, was headed back to her home in north Delhi’s Inderlok area. Yadav was arrested on 7 December from Mathura in a joint operation by Delhi and Uttar Pradesh police and produced before the court on 8 December. The police had filed the charge sheet against Yadav on December 24, 19 days after the incident for alleged offences punishable under sections 376 (rape), 366 (kidnapping or abducting woman with an intent to compel her for marriage), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) under IPC. In the charge sheet, the police had relied on the forensic evidence and also placed on record the route map of the car in which the offence was committed. Earlier, the police had told the court that during Yadav’s custodial interrogation, they have recovered mobile phones and clothes, which he was wearing at the time of the offence. Yadav had refused to undergo Test Identification Parade (TIP), saying the woman had already seen his photograph in Uber’s website and she would definitely identify him. TIP is a process under the criminal law through which a victim identifies an accused. The police had also told the court that Yadav was hired by Uber and it had not verified his particulars and they have lodged a case of cheating against the firm. The case will now be heard by special fast track court exclusively set up to deal with cases of sexual offences against women. While dismissing Yadav’s plea seeking additional security, the court said from the day of his arrest, he has been in the custody of local authorities and no harm has been caused to him and they have taken full care. “It is observed that the accused is not having any visible injury or complaint regarding any assault on him,” the magistrate said, adding that the accused cannot be given any additional security and nobody can be given blanket cover. The court also rejected the defence counsel’s application seeking to direct the media not to run a parallel trial in the case till Yadav is exonerated or convicted in the case. During the hearing, the court also refused to give several other documents asked for by the defence counsel, saying all the documents on which the prosecution has relied have already been given to the accused. “All the photographs (of finger prints) are very much legible and clear. Do you want us to give you the original copies. “Mr counsel do not try to make unnecessary delay in the trial,” the magistrate said. The police also supplied copy of GPS map to the accused after which the court noted that no more documents have been sought by Yadav. Delhi Police had filed the charge sheet in the case on 24 December. PTI