Unnao, April 15: The country has not even recovered from the shock of Kathua and Unnao rape cases and still reports of barbaric behaviour with women and girls continue to surface in the media. Adding to the list of rape allegations against politicians in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere, a woman from Uttar Pradesh's Safipur town in Unnao district has accused a councillor of raping her. The woman alleged that the councillor, Imran, and his accomplice took turns to rape her, while the other filmed the act, and then blackmailed her to keep mum about it.

The victim's husband told reporters that the accused was a member of the Samajwadi Party (SP) who claimed that his influence would prevent him from any action against him. He added, "A complaint was registered after two months, but the accused are not being arrested." Meanwhile, the Unnao Police said that an FIR was immediately registered,

Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Anup Singh told ANI, "The FIR was registered at the time of complaint itself. An investigation is underway and we'll see that an action is taken."

This comes days after another girl from Unnao alleged that she was raped by BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his accomplices in June, last year.  The victim's family also alleged that the accused MLA's brother, Atul Singh Sengar, along with his companions also raped the girl and thrashed the victim's father on April 3 for refusing to withdraw the FIR over the same. Atul Singh and five other accused have been sent to jail, and the accused MLA has been sent to seven-day Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody.

There are shocking details coming in from Surat where a girl has been found dead with multiple marks on her body. Reports say that the minor was raped, killed and her body dumped in an open area in Surat. The police is further investigating the case. Coming to the allegations against the Councillor in Unnao, there is no doubt that those in position of power in Uttar Pradesh feel they are above law and can get away with even heinous acts. The fact that BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar's arrest came almost 10 months after he was accused of committing the crime, is testimony to the fact that unless there is pressure from media and the court (the Allahabad High Court had come down heavily on UP government for its inability to arrest MLA Sengar) the police also becomes a mute spectator for helpless victims. One would expect faster action and judgement on the part of the government and administrations in cases of crime against women and children especially when there is sexual abuse involved in the case. (With Agency Inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 15, 2018 02:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).