A POCSO court in Rajasthan on Tuesday sentenced six men to life imprisonment in the Ajmer sex scandal case. One of the most disturbing criminal cases from the early 1990s, it involved the sexual exploitation and blackmailing of as many as 100 young schoolgirls in Ajmer.
The six accused, identified as Nafees Chishti, Naseem alias Tarzan, Salim Chishti, Iqbal Bhati, Sohail Ghani and Syed Zameer Hussain, were found guilty of the heinous crimes. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on each accused. Previously, nine others were jailed for life in the same case and four were acquitted by the high court.
The Ajmer Rape Case 1992
The 1992 Ajmer gangrape case, known as the “Ajmer blackmail kaand,” involved the gangrape and blackmail of multiple young women, with video recordings and photos used to silence them. The case exposed a toxic mix of political patronage, religious influence, impunity, and small-town glamour.
The case was first exposed by journalist Santosh Gupta in a local newspaper, Dainik Navjyoti, in April 1992.
The accused, including the influential Chishty duo of Farooq and Nafis, associated with the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, and their associates, exploited and gang raped scores of schoolgirls. A local photo lab printed and circulated nude pictures of the victims.
When the case came to light, religious tensions flared in Ajmer, leading to city-wide shutdowns. Despite the public outcry, the identities and whereabouts of the survivors remained unknown. Many victims came from modest, middle-class families of government employees but were misleadingly labelled as “IAS-IPS ki betiyan” (daughters of IAS and IPS officers), by the media. Several families fled Ajmer in the aftermath, seeking refuge from the stigma and trauma.
Lawyers said that Section 273 of the Criminal Procedure Code required survivors to testify in the presence of the accused.
Police records, though incomplete, reveal the survivors’ first names and outdated addresses, making it challenging to maintain contact. For over 30 years, the constant summons to court, often accompanied by policemen arriving at their doorstep, became a painful reminder of the ordeal for the victims.
“I am now a grandmother, leave me alone. We have families. What do we tell them?” cried a gangrape survivor back in 2021 after being summoned to court again.
Even the police were frustrated. In 2022, SHO Dalbeer Singh, tasked with delivering summons for about a year, shared the emotional toll on the survivors, “How many times will we drag them to court? On phone calls, they abuse us. Every time they see a policeman at their doors, they get terrified.”
Describing the experience as “one hell of a task”, he revealed the heartbreaking consequences of repeatedly forcing survivors to relive their trauma. One family reported that their daughter had died, possibly due to the emotional toll, and another family sent a lawyer to intimidate him. At least three victims attempted suicide after recording their statements in court.
In 2023, sacked Rajasthan minister Rajinder Gudha alleged that Congress leaders, including former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, were involved in the scandal.
The 2023 Hindi movie, Ajmer 92, is also based on the infamous Ajmer sex scandal.
