Goa minister’s son may go scot-free in rape case

PANAJI - Goa Education Minister Atanasio Monserrate’s son Rohit, who has been charge-sheeted for raping a minor foreign national, may go scot free as the victim’s mother formally told the authorities here Friday that the victim would not depose in court.

The mother of the 14-year-old victim, who is a German national, has also written to the Goa Children’s Court (GCC), that “she does not want to pursue the matter against Rohit Monserrate”.

On Oct 2, 2008, the mother in a written complaint to the Calangute police station said that Rohit had molested her daughter and sent her lewd messages. She subsequently revealed that Rohit had raped her daughter and then asked her to drink alcohol and smoke lots of cigarettes to avoid pregnancy.

“The victim has forgotten everything and she does not want to remember it again,” the mother has said in a letter to the GCC, which was taken on record during the proceedings Friday.

She has also said that both she and the victim were unwilling to pursue the case which was booked nearly two years ago.

Rohit’s father had been initially charged with abetting the rape, but the charge was subsequently withdrawn after police claimed they had no evidence to back it up.

According to the complainant, the police had initially tried to cover up the entire case by first not registering the complaint and later by dragging its feet over arresting Rohit, who surrendered to the police weeks after going into hiding.

German consulate officials had to intervene and write to the chief minister asking him to probe the case seriously.