Thaindian News

New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) The Supreme Court Thursday granted bail to former Haryana director general of police S.P.S. Rathore, who is serving an 18-month jail sentence in the 1990 Ruchika Girhotra molestation case.

The apex court bench of Justice P. Sathasivam and Justice B.S. Chauhan said Rathore would not leave the country without specific permission of the court.

The court took note of the fact that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has already filed closure report in respect of two first information reports (FIRs) against Rathore.

It also noted the submission of Additional Solicitor General Harin Rawal that the investigating agency would file closure report in the third FIR against Rathore.

The court said that in the last hearing of the matter Oct 27, Rawal had objected to the grant of bail on the ground that three FIRs were pending against Rathore.

The court said that the petitioner (Rathore) is granted bail since the investigating agency has filed the closure report in two FIRS and would file it in the third FIR also.

When the bail was opposed by the victim’s lawyer, the court said that even in the cases of life sentence the court considers plea for bail after the accused has undergone five years of imprisonment.

Rathore, 69, is currently lodged in the high-security Burail Jail in Chandigarh, where he is serving his sentence for molesting 14-year-old Ruchika. The teen committed suicide in 1993 due to the harassment.

Rathore was sentenced to 18 months’ rigorous imprisonment by a district and sessions court of Chandigarh May 25.

At the time of Ruchika’s molestation, Rathore was deputy inspector general of Haryana Police and headed the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association (HLTA). The budding tennis player was molested by Rathore at the Panchkula-based office of the HLTA.