Bhadohi, 9 September

A case has been registered against 31 persons and some unidentified others for misleading the court by allegedly submitting false and forged affidavits to shield the accused in a 2020 Bhadohi gangrape, police said on Wednesday.

Additional Superintendent of Police Shubham Agrawal said the case was registered at Unj police station in compliance with an order issued by Chief Judicial Magistrate Anand Mishra on Tuesday.

The survivor had approached the court on June 6, 2026, alleging that officials had helped the accused and that false affidavits had been used to mislead the court and suppress her statement. Following her complaint, Mishra directed police to register a case, police said.

He said the FIR has been logged under relevant sections related to false statements/evidence, criminal conspiracy, cheating, and forgery of the erstwhile IPC.

According to the police, the incident dates back to 2020, when a 45-year-old woman was allegedly raped multiple times inside her house in a village under Unj police station. The woman, a labourer, had alleged that Manoj, Arvind and five others entered her house, threatened her with weapons and raped her. Several others allegedly joined them subsequently.

Based on her complaint, an FIR was registered at Unj police station under sections 376D (gangrape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC and an investigation was conducted.

Agrawal said a chargesheet was initially submitted during the investigation along with affidavits furnished on behalf of the accused, without recording the woman's statement or conducting her medical examination.

Following the woman's plea, the court ordered a fresh investigation, he said.

During the second investigation, police allegedly relied on false and fabricated affidavits, including documents purportedly filed without the signatures of any advocate, and submitted a closure report before the court on October 30, 2021, Agrawal said.

He alleged that the developments resulted in the woman and her children facing social humiliation

After the woman again opposed the closure report, the court recorded her statement under Section 200 of the IPC, police said.

The court subsequently found prima facie merit in the woman's allegations of gangrape and permitted prosecution to proceed, Agrawal said.

The woman later approached the court again on June 6, 2026, alleging that officials had helped the accused and that false affidavits had been used to mislead the court and suppress her statement.

Following the complaint, the chief judicial magistrate directed Unj police to register a case against Rajpati Bind and 30 other named persons, besides unidentified individuals. The matter is now under detailed investigation, police said.