Rathore's plea against jail for molesting Ruchika dismissed

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana High Court Wednesday dismissed an appeal filed by disgraced former Haryana police chief S.P.S. Rathore against his conviction and sentence of 18 months' jail by a court in the 1990 Ruchika Girhotra molestation case.

Justice Jitender Chauhan, in a stinging remark, said that Rathore's conduct was "shameful" and he did not deserve any leniency.

The court also observed that "Rathore should have acted as a protector and not as a predator".

Ironically, Rathore's appeal against his conviction, by the district and sessions court here, was dismissed on a day when he completed 100 days in Chandigarh's high-security Burail jail.

The high court also dismissed his plea seeking his release on probation from the prison.

Rathore, 68, was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment by the district and sessions court of Chandigarh on May 25.