Ankit Tiwari Rape Case To Reopen; Victim Claims She Was Forced To Change Her Statement

It has just been a week since singer Ankit Tiwari has been acquitted by the Mumbai sessions court in the rape case against him. The victim now claims that she was threatened and pressurised by the singer and his brother Ankur Tiwari to take back the case and is planning to move the Bombay High Court to reopen the case.

Ankit was arrested in May 2014 on the basis of a complaint of rape filed against him by a woman. She had alleged that the singer has raped her on several occasions by promising to marry her. Last week, the complainant was summoned by the Mumbai sessions court to give her statement in the case, when she said that she could not remember the incident and changed her statement. The court observed her as hostile and acquitted the singer and his brother (who was accused of threatening her to take back the case).

In a sudden development, the victim now wants to reopen the case in Bombay High Court. Talking to a leading daily, she said, “I decided to withdraw the case after fighting for almost a year, as Ankit and his family pleaded saying that it was affecting his career. My family and husband (she got married in 2015) were pressured by them and their lawyer, Neeraj Gupta. I agreed and in return, asked them to apologise to my parents, who were insulted by them. I also got it in writing that they would never give a statement — direct or indirect — against me or on the case once they were acquitted, failing which I would be free to initiate any legal action I deem fit. They have not only tried to tarnish my image by claiming that they are innocent, but have also gone all out to prove that the case was false.”

The complainant has said that she would come out and talk to the media on the issue because she wants everyone to know the truth. She is even appointing a lawyer to proceed with the case in High Court.