Death penalty cancelled, man rapes, murders deaf-mute minor girl in Madhya Pradesh

A convicted serial rapist, now accused of raping an 11-year-old speech and hearing-impaired girl in Madhya Pradesh’s Rajgarh district, was arrested on February 19 in a joint operation by the state police along with forces from Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

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According to reports, the police kept a close watch on every move of the suspect. Despite his efforts to evade capture by frequently changing locations, the Rajgarh police used high-tech surveillance and an advanced intelligence network to track him continuously.

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The police reviewed footage from 136 CCTV cameras, identified 79 individuals, and analyzed call detail records from over 700 mobile numbers in their investigation. Ultimately, Ramesh Khati was captured in the Rajgarh district. Rajgarh District SP Aditya Mishra shared Khati's criminal history with India Today TV, noting that he is a serial offender with consistent patterns of crime.

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The report further noted that earlier in 2003, he was convicted of raping a five-year-old girl and served 10 years in prison. Upon his release in 2014, he raped an eight-year-old girl in Sehore district.

After his release, Ramesh Khati was booked in a theft case in 2013, and in 2014, he was again involved in a POCSO case, as reported by Indian Express.

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According to the police, he was initially handed a death sentence by the trial court. However, the High Court overturned the death sentence on technical grounds, citing that the victim's father had been present during the identification parade, which may have influenced the results, according to the report by India Today.

Child rape cases, including all forms of penetrative assaults, have seen a staggering 96 percent increase from 2016 to 2022, as per an analysis of NCRB data conducted by the child rights NGO CRY.

(With inputs from agencies)