A Punjab police constable was compelled to record her own physical exploitation at the hands of senior Akali Dal leader and former Punjab Agriculture Minister Sucha Singh Langah. She submitted the video as evidence against the accused leader.
The 39-year-old victim is currently posted in Pathankot. In her complaint, she said nobody believed her story without the video evidence – as the Akali Dal is very influential in the region.
She said her husband, who was also a police employee, passed away in 2008. She then approached Langah, then a Cabinet minister, for a job on compassionate grounds.
She was given the job, but at the cost of sexual favours.
“I was shocked as I was his daughter’s classmate. Keeping in view his political clout and influence, I remained silent. He first assaulted me in 2009 and then blackmailed me. This continued till early 2017. I was compelled to record the injustice as nobody would have believed me. It is only on the basis of this video that I could prove him guilty of rape,” says the victim, who has now returned to her village.
Police have registered a case against Langah, who has been absconding ever since.
“We have registered the case under section 376, 384, 420, 506 of IPC. The victim has also submitted the video as evidence. The investigation is on,” said Gurbans Singh, DSP Gurdaspur.
The incident has created ripples in the political circles of Punjab, as the accused belongs to Gurdaspur Lok Sabha constituency, where a by poll is to be held on October 15.
The Congress, which is in Opposition, has made this an election issue.