Nineteen years have passed since 14-year-old Ruchika Girhotra, a budding tennis player, was allegedly molested by a senior police officer, and 16 years since the girl, left traumatised by the incident, committed suicide by consuming a poisonous substance.

And it’s been nine years since the CBI filed a chargesheet in the case, which has former DGP SPS Rathore as the accused. Still the case hangs in fire.

The Ruchika molestation case that hit headlines in 1990 will now be heard by the Chandigarh CBI Court as per the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court passed last week. It was being heard in the CBI Court in Patiala and before that in the Ambala CBI Court. The case is now slated for hearing in Chandigarh on November 15.

Fighting a lonely battle is 66-year-old Anand Parkash, the complainant, who has been running from pillar to post all these 19 years. Facing an ordeal of attending numerous court hearings (over 100 hearings since the filing of chargesheet), political hurdles and pressures, this retired chief engineer has now pinned his hopes on the judiciary.

“I am fighting it out in the interest of the public and justice,” says Anand. Incidentally, Anand is not related to deceased Ruchika. She was the classmate of his daughter Reemu, who was an eyewitness to the molestation incident.

Trials and tribulations
The incident:Ruchika was member of the Haryana Lawn Tennis Association and Rathore, the then Inspector General of Police in Haryana, was the president of the sports body. Around noon on August 11, 1990, Rathore visited the Girhotra household to persuade her father not to interrupt Ruchika’s training by sending her abroad as she was a promising player. Rathore then asked Girhotra to send Ruchika to his office the next day at noon to discuss her training. The next day, Ruchika went with Reemu, who was asked by Rathore to go out on some pretext. After she returned shortly, she saw Rathore embracing Ruchika. Both girls ran out of the office.

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