Srinagar, April 2: Ahead of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019, Talib Hussain, a man who led the protest seeking justice into the gangrape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir, joined People's Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday. Hussain joined the party in the presence of  PDP chief and former chief minister of the state Mehbooba Mufti. The social activist also lauded the role played by Mufti in fighting for justice for the girl who was gang-raped in Kathua last year. Kathua Gangrape Activist, Talib Hussain Booked For Domestic Violence.

After Hussain joined the party, the former state chief minister tweeted, “Happy to welcome well known tribal rights activist Chowdhary Talib Hussain into PDP today. He fought tirelessly to ensure justice for Rasana rape victim at the cost of his personal safety. I am confident that he will work tirelessly towards our vision for a khushaal J&K.” Talib along with Deepika Singh Rajawat had become the face of the agitation for justice to the eight-year-old girl.

Mehbooba Mufti's tweet: 

However, last year, a JNU student claimed that Hussain had raped her at a room in Delhi's Batla House in April, 2018. She penned an article in the Firstpost narrating the sequence of the alleged sexual assault. The victim claimed that a week before "raping" her, Talib had proposed to marry her. "His declared intention (of 'nikaah') was not just to deceive me, it was also intended to assure himself that he is not from the same category of the men who raped and murdered the eight-year-old Bakarwal child," she said. He is currently out on a bail.

Hussain was also arrested for alleged domestic violence. He was charged for attempting to kill his wife over dowry. According to a report published in the Indian Express, an FIR was registered after a preliminary inquiry by the police into the complaint of Talib’s wife Nusrat Begum.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 02, 2019 04:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).