Amid Bihar’s rising rape reports, a Purnia saga defies norms: a youth faces aunt’s assault charge, claims he busted her affair, then poisons himself to escape family fury. Critical in hospital, his tale challenges the narrative and sparks probe demands.
Set in Mirganj’s Barkon village, the 45-year-old accuser was tending maize when, she says, her 22-year-old nephew forced himself on her. The couple’s police complaint ignited a home visit.
Terrified not by law but by brothers’ potential violence, the accused gulped poison. Family ferried him to Purnia Medical College, battling severe poisoning effects.
Interviews reveal his side: the woman, his relational aunt, was seen intimately with another in the field. Fearing exposure, she weaponized a rape lie, he asserts. Brotherly beating loomed larger than arrest.
The sibling lashed out at police for jailing family innocents over 24 hours, ignoring real inquiry. ‘Bias is evident,’ he charged.
This standoff pits word against word in a high-stakes drama. Protests over Bihar rapes add pressure, but here, truth hinges on evidence like forensics and timelines. Resolving it fairly could prevent rash actions born of desperation, restoring faith in justice amid familial betrayal.