Victory Of Justice

Mohan returned to his room in the college hostel after attending all his classes. He was a third-year engineering student. He was studying mechanical engineering in Sri Venkateswara College of Engineering in Bengaluru. His father Adhisheshan Rao was a retired bank employee. His mother Lalita was a lecturer in a women's college.

He was around six feet tall and had a great physique. His broad shoulders and six-pack abs made him very popular. He was cleanly shaven with neat and trimmed curly hair. He had a square-shaped face with a pointed nose. He had well-chiseled facial features. His good looks earned him more enemies than friends. His lecturers liked him and entrusted him with important tasks. Most of his classmates were friendly with him.

Mehul and Anuj along with their cronies had been a pain in his neck. They envied him as he had topped all the semester exams. They constantly plotted ways to expel him from the college. They posted nasty comments in the social media after creating a fake ID in Mohan's name. They had slammed the lectures for being slow and boring. Mehul showed these comments to their lecturers. They did not take his complaint seriously. On the contrary, they took him to task for accusing Mohan.

Mehul and Anuj vowed to avenge their humiliation. Mehul called his friend Tilak who was a drug addict. He promised to pay for the fresh supply of drugs in exchange for a couple of cocaine packets. Tilak came to the hostel at around 5.30 PM. He sent an SMS to Mehul asking him to come out. Mehul paid him cash and took the packets from him. "Let me see how you escape this time", thought Mehul. He crept towards Mohan's room. He cast a furtive glance all around to make sure no one was looking. He stealthily moved towards Mohan' bed. He had kept his duffel bag under his bed. Mehul picked up the bag and executed his plan. He had kept the cocaine packets between Mohan's books.

Mehul left the room gloating over the success of his plan in advance. Next day Mohan opened his bag to take out his books. Mehul had anticipated that the packets would fall out in front of the whole class. He was shocked to find Mohan writing furiously. The class lecturer Mr.Akshay Sehgal noticed Mehul staring at Mohan. He reprimanded him,"Why are you wasting your time? Don't you want to take down the notes?" The entire class laughed at him as he hung his head in shame.

He concentrated on his lessons. Mehul was bewildered. He couldn't accept the failure of his plan. Mohan saw him looking confused. He spoke to him very kindly. He said," Cheer up, brother! Don't give up your attempts to get me rusticated. You must be wondering what happened to the drugs. I discovered them when I was checking my bag. I threw them in a garbage bin. I knew it must be your handiwork. I would advise you to stop watching soap operas and study."

Mehul was so embarrassed that he left the classroom with his friends. Anuj consoled him,"Don't lose your temper over trivial issues. I have a superb idea that will never backfire"

Anuj whispered his plan into Mehul's ears. Mehul was ecstatic. He was quite confident this plan would not fail. He approached Amruta who had a crush on Mohan. He told her that Mohan was in love with Rekha. Amruta was heartbroken. Mehul pretended to sympathize with her. He told her about his plan to unite her with Mohan. She agreed to help him with his devious scheme.

A couple of days later Amruta asked Mohan to help her solve some equations. He agreed to help her unaware of her evil intention. She went to his room with a textbook. Anuj had called Mohan's roommates for a game of football. There was no one except Mohan. She knocked at his door and entered the room. She closed it behind her and bolted it from inside.

Mohan was getting uncomfortable. He asked her,"Why do you want to lock the door? We will suffocate in this cramped room". Amruta was trying to seduce him. "Hi, handsome" , she said licking her lips,"Let's have some lessons on love" . Mohan was furious. He screamed,"You are a characterless bitch. Just go away before I kill you". Mehul switched off the power supply as soon as he received a signal from her. Amruta threw herself at him. Both of them rolled over the floor. Amruta tore her blouse and started shouting for help. Mehul restored the power supply. Students gathered outside Mohan's room. Mehul broke open the door to find Mohan lying over Amruta. Mehul pushed him away from her. All the students thrashed Mohan before handing him over to the police. The college principal rusticated him.

The news spread like a wildfire that Mohan had raped Amruta. All the lecturers verbally abused him. Mehul and his gang members celebrated his expulsion. The principal sent her to the hospital for medical examination. Mehul offered to be with her during the checkup. He had already asked his millionaire father to arrange for a fake medical certificate. Amruta's family lodged an FIR with the police. They furnished the medical certificate confirming her rape.

Mohan's parents came rushing all the way from Mysuru to be with their son. Mohan pleaded his innocence. Nobody except his parents believed him. His mother Lalita said,"Don't worry, son. We will get you acquitted very soon. My son has never looked at a girl with lustful eyes. Though circumstantial evidence is against you, the truth will prevail".

Mohan had spent a sleepless night in the police custody. They had thrashed him brutally to force a confession out of him. He kept on denying even after being beaten. His father walked in with a renowned criminal lawyer S.Venugopal on the following day. They were appalled by the sight of Mohan's bruises.

Venugopal spoke to the Inspector in a stern voice. He questioned him,"What is this, Inspector? Why have you beaten him mercilessly? Is this the way to interrogate an accused? Have you been trying to force him into a confession? Why should he confess if he hasn't done anything?" The Inspector added with a smirk,"He is not just an accused. He is a criminal. He has raped his college mate. We have witnesses and evidence to support her claim". Venugopal was scratching his beard. He said,"I think there are too many loopholes in this case. If I were you, I would have checked the veracity of her claims. I am not a misogynist or a male chauvinist. However, a scorned woman or a spurned lover may level baseless rape charges for seeking revenge. They might want to be in the limelight to garner public attention and sympathy. I feel that women should not misuse the law meant for their protection".

The inspector said,"You are right. I never thought that there could be another angle in this case" Venugopal produced an order from the magistrate to take Mohan to his house for a day. The Inspector asked him,"Why do you want to take him home?" The lawyer replied,"I want to be sure of his innocence before I take up the case". Mohan came out with a constable. Venugopal spoke to the father-son duo. He explained the terms and conditions of his temporary release for a day. Mohan agreed to follow the instructions. Venugopal took him to his house. He said," Take a shower and have your meals. I am expecting an important file from a client. She will be coming in the afternoon. She will be handing over the file to you. Keep it safe on my table."

Mohan nodded in reply. He had a hearty breakfast. The doorbell rang at around 1.30 PM. A beautiful young woman in her twenties stepped in with a gray colored file. He took it from her and kept it on the table.

She got up and closed the door. "What are you doing, miss?" he asked her nervously. She opened her shirt button to expose her cleavage. She stripped off her clothes and stood naked in front of him. She was about to kiss him when he slapped her real hard. She was shocked. She had tears in her eyes. She had expected him to make love to her. He went to fetch a blanket and covered her body with it.

He apologized to her for slapping her. She smiled and shook hands with him. She dressed up and went away. Mohan went back to jail on the following day.

The court began his trial after a couple of days. Amrutha's lawyer Anil Kamat questioned all the witnesses. He presented the evidence implicating Mohan. Venugopal cleared his throat and spoke up,"Please watch this video before we could proceed with the case." The video showed Mohan slapping the nude woman to resist her sexual advances. He covered up the woman with a blanket.

After the video ended, Venugopal began to speak. He said, "I would like to tell you that Mohan didn't know about the secret surveillance. I had switched on the CCTV camera without his knowledge. Have you ever seen a rapist covering up a nude woman? Mohan could have lunged upon her to satisfy his lust. He had the opportunity to take advantage of her. He didn't show any interest in the woman. How could he rape this girl?" There was absolute silence in the court.

Anil Kamat wiped off his sweat. Venugopal launched a scathing attack on Amruta. He called her for a cross-examination. He asked her, "Why did you go to Mohan's room after the sunset?" She stammered while answering, "I needed some help with my lesson. I had a special class to attend. That is why I went to his room after 7 PM." Venugopal retorted,"You could have asked your lecturers to clear your doubts. Do you have Mohan's mobile number?" She nodded in response to his question.

Venugopal continued,"Why didn't you call him over the phone? How did you get a medical certificate in such a short time? What happened to the dress that you were wearing at the time of the incident?" Amruta lost her confidence as she fumbled for words. She told him that she threw away the torn dress. Venugopal laughed at her. He said,"Do you realize that you tampered with the evidence?" Amruta was silent. He summoned the medical examiner Dr.Pallavi Mehta for questioning.

He asked her the procedure of issuing a medical certificate and the time involved. She answered all the questions without hesitation. She also said that she had not issued any certificate confirming the rape. She was the chief doctor of The LifeLine Hospital. All the medical certificates issued by the hospital bore her signature. She didn't remember any patient complaining of rape. Finally, Venugopal grilled Mehul. He finally confessed to having staged a fake rape case to get Mohan expelled from the college.

The judge heard the final argument. He announced his final verdict. He acquitted Mohan from the rape charge. He ordered disciplinary action against Mehul and his gang members including Amruta. The police arrested them as per the court order. Mohan was finally relieved to be free. His college principal apologized to him. He welcomed him back to the college. Mohan sought blessings from his parents Venugopal and the college principal. He had no faith in Indian Judiciary until Venugopal defended him. He was looking forward to an exciting year in the college.

He smiled when he heard Venugopal saying "Satyamev Jayate. The truth will always win over a pack of lies."