Today, On 254th January, The Supreme Court denied bail to Seema Rani, the wife of suspended Delhi government officer Premoday Khakha, in a case involving the sexual assault of a minor. Rani is accused of giving the girl medicines to end her pregnancy. She is currently in judicial custody as investigations continue.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court denied bail to Seema Rani Khakha, the wife of suspended Delhi government officer Premoday Khakha, who is accused of repeatedly raping a minor and impregnating her.
A bench consisting of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma did, however, allow the petitioner the option to approach the trial court for bail after one year.
Advocate Subhashis Soren, representing the accused, argued that Seema Rani has been in jail since August 2023 and that charges have already been framed in the case.
Also Read: Supreme Court: Wife of Delhi Govt Officer Remains in Custody| Minor’s Sexual Assault Case
The Delhi police’s counsel opposed the bail request, but the Supreme Court remained unconvinced and dismissed the plea.
On September 6, the Delhi High Court had also rejected Seema Rani’s bail application, stating that the case “strikes at the root of trust between two families” and that the risk of witness tampering could not be dismissed at this stage.
Premoday Khakha faces allegations of raping the daughter of a family acquaintance multiple times between November 2020 and January 2021 and has been in judicial custody since his arrest in August 2023. Seema Rani is accused of providing the minor with medication to terminate her pregnancy and is likewise in judicial custody.
The High Court noted that while “bail is the rule and jail an exception,” a balance must be struck, particularly in sexual assault cases involving minors.
The court observed,
“In this instance, the victim, after her father’s death, went to live with the accused’s family and referred to Premoday Khakha as ‘mama’ (uncle),”
The seriousness of the allegations, it remarked, “strikes at the root of trust between the two families.”
Seema Rani’s counsel argued that she is 50 years old and has been in custody for a year, claiming that the allegations made by the minor survivor, including those of pregnancy, are false. Her lawyer pointed to a medical report indicating that the main accused had undergone a vasectomy, rendering him “incapable of reproducing.”
Also Read: ‘Terminate 30-Week Pregnancy’: HC Permits 11-Year-Old Sexual Assault Survivor
However, the court countered that the issue of pregnancy was irrelevant at the bail stage and that Seema Rani should have “protected the girl.”
The court stated,
“We are not considering pregnancy or abortion at this stage. A child comes to your home, and you do this,”
Both were arrested in August 2023 after the survivor provided her statement to a magistrate at a hospital. The case has been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code.