5 months after DU student's murder, letter claims prolonged sexual abuse by cousin

NEW DELHI: Five months after the murder of an 18-year-old Delhi University student, a letter from her possessions has brought to light serious allegations of prolonged sexual abuse by her cousin, prompting Delhi Police to register a fresh case under charges of rape, POCSO and criminal intimidation, an official said on Tuesday.

According to police, the student was murdered on June 1 in a Mehrauli park by a youth, who allegedly attacked her with a knife multiple times over unrequited affection. The accused was arrested soon after, and the chargesheet in the case has been filed in court.

A senior police officer said the latest case surfaced on November 20 when the deceased student's mother was cleaning her daughter's room. While sorting her belongings, she found a diary placed between her notebooks. Inside were two handwritten pages in a mix of Hindi and English, penned years earlier by the victim.

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On reading the contents, the woman approached the Jahangirpuri police station a few days ago and submitted the letter along with a complaint, police added. According to the letter, written when the girl was in Class 7, she allegedly accused her uncle's son of sexually assaulting her repeatedly between the ages of six and twelve.

She wrote that the cousin would lure her away during family gatherings under the guise of playing hide-and-seek and then assault her. She also mentioned frequent threats to her life, crude remarks and persistent intimidation that prevented her from confiding in her parents. She confessed that at one point, the trauma pushed her to contemplate suicide, police sources said.

The girl mentioned that the assaults stopped when her cousin later moved away from the area. A senior police officer informed that the girl's mother handed over the letter, which was then examined by forensic experts who matched the handwriting to the girl's notebooks. "After the handwriting examination confirmed authorship, an FIR was registered," the officer said. Further investigation is underway.