The Allahabad High Court has ordered the Uttar Pradesh government to rehabilitate and relocate the family of the 2020 Hathras gang-rape victim to either Ghaziabad or Noida within three months, admonishing the administration for failing to comply with previous judicial directives.
A bench consisting of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Jaspreet Singh issued the order on Monday while quashing a state government decision dated February 22, 2025. The overturned decision had proposed relocating the family to Kasganj, Etah, or Aligarh instead. The court further mandated that upon completion of the relocation, the state must secure employment for one family member, adhering to an earlier ruling issued on July 26, 2022.
The court directed the Additional Chief Secretary (Home) to submit a compliance affidavit confirming implementation of the order. The bench warned that the official will be required to appear in court personally on November 30 should the state fail to comply.
Court Rejects Alternative Districts Proposed by State
In its ruling, the high court criticized the government’s handling of the matter, observing that the state’s February 22, 2025 decision failed to even reference the family’s explicit request for resettlement in Ghaziabad or Noida. As a result, the court ruled that the state’s proposed alternatives could not be considered valid compliance with prior judicial instructions.
The bench remarked that the administration demonstrated unnecessary resistance, adding that its stance supported the family’s claim that the government was approaching the matter as adversarial litigation.
Safety Concerns and Case Background
Appearing on behalf of the victim’s family, advocate Mahmood Pracha told the court that moving to Kasganj, Etah, or Aligarh presented safety concerns due to their geographic proximity to Hathras. He noted that the family has no relatives in those areas, whereas living in Ghaziabad or Noida—where their relatives reside—would allow them to live normally without fear.
The legal proceedings relate to the September 2020 incident in which a 19-year-old woman was allegedly gang-raped by four men in her village in Hathras. She died two weeks later at a hospital in Delhi.
