Pastor Jashan Gill accused of rape and forced abortion leading to death of college student in Punjab: Exclusive details from case documents

Days after controversial Pastor Bajinder Singh was sentenced to life imprisonment for the rape of a minor girl, more such allegations against other pastors have started to surface in Punjab. Pastor Jashan Gill, who is based in Dina Nagar, Gurdaspur, and linked to a church branch in Jammu, has been accused of raping a 22-year-old BCA student. She was later forced to undergo a botched abortion, allegedly leading to her death.

The incident took place in 2023. OpIndia has accessed Sessions Court documents in the matter, as the father has accused the police of not cooperating with the victim’s family. The father has approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

According to the victim’s father’s statement given during a press conference, the family used to visit a church in Abul Khair village where Pastor Gill allegedly lured and raped his daughter. Upon learning about the pregnancy, he reportedly arranged an abortion through a nurse named Satinder Kaur. The procedure was allegedly conducted in an unsafe and negligent manner, causing an infection that led to the victim’s death in May 2023.

The grieving father accused Punjab Police of shielding the accused and delaying the FIR by over two months, and alleged that key individuals, including the nurse, were not named in the FIR. The post-mortem report was allegedly withheld for months, and the case was diluted under lesser IPC sections.

Frustrated with police inaction, the father approached the High Court, seeking a CBI inquiry into the matter, which he has termed a cover-up involving police officials, medical staff, and church figures.

Background of the case

The FIR was registered at Dina Nagar Police Station on the complaint of the deceased’s father under Sections 304(A) and 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Later, offences under Sections 313 and 314 IPC were added.

According to the complaint filed by the deceased’s father, the victim complained of stomach pain on 18th May 2023, after which she was taken to Civil Hospital, Babri. The doctors advised an ultrasound examination, which revealed she had undergone an abortion and was suffering from an infection. The doctor informed the victim’s family that the abortion had been conducted in a very negligent manner and the veins of his daughter were damaged. She was referred to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar. While en route to Amritsar, the deceased’s mother asked the victim about the matter.

She revealed that the abortion had been conducted by Satinder Kaur, co-accused in the case, who was working as a nurse in village Ghot Pokhar. She further told her mother that the accused, Pastor Gill, had committed sexual intercourse with her against her wishes by alluring her.

During the treatment at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, the victim passed away. The court noted that according to the FIR, certain call detail records between the victim and the accused were also found during the inquiry, and the sister of the deceased stated that she was aware of the fact that the accused had raped her sister, leading to pregnancy and later abortion. In fact, the accused had referred her to Nurse Satinder Kaur for the abortion.

The court noted that there was a likelihood that the accused might hamper or interfere in the investigation if granted bail, and may not cooperate in the same, because a person under pre-arrest bail may not disclose all the relevant facts during questioning due to the safeguard provided to him while granting anticipatory bail.

The court said, “Therefore, considering the seriousness and gravity of the offence which requires thorough investigation, which may not be possible without the custodial interrogation of the accused/applicant, this court is of the opinion that the accused/applicant is not entitled to concession of pre-arrest bail,” and dismissed the bail plea. However, the court noted that the observations made should not affect the merits of the main case.

Pastor Gill’s bail rejected by the court

In June 2024, Gurdaspur Sessions Court rejected Jashan Gill’s bail plea, where Advocate Krishan Kumar Malhi represented the accused. In his argument, Advocate Malhi claimed that his client never raped the deceased and never got her aborted, as alleged in the complaint. He further argued that there was an inordinate delay of 47 days in registering the FIR. The accused’s counsel also claimed that while the deceased was alive, she never made any complaint against Pastor Gill. Furthermore, he claimed that the accused was in fact helping the deceased’s mother with prayers for her illness. Above all, he argued, while placing a medical examination on record, that his sperm count was far below normal to get the victim pregnant.

However, the Assistant Public Prosecutor appearing for the State pointed out that the allegations against the accused were serious in nature, requiring thorough investigation to find out under what circumstances he allured and raped the victim and later forced her to get the pregnancy aborted.

In July 2023, the bail application of nurse Satinder Kaur was also rejected. In her defence, the counsel representing Satinder Kaur claimed that she was being falsely implicated in the case and had no connection whatsoever with the alleged crime. She also claimed that she was not a nurse but a housewife. As she had never served in a clinic or a hospital, there was no question of an abortion being conducted. The counsel claimed that her name was added merely on suspicion and her address and phone number were wrongly mentioned in the FIR.

While rejecting the bail, the court noted, “Serious allegations of conducting the abortion of the deceased/prosecutrix in a negligent manner without having any qualification have been levelled against the present accused-applicant. The perusal of record reveals that investigation is still pending and the accused-applicants have not yet joined the investigation. Thus, the chance of their escaping the procedure of law, tampering with the evidence or threatening the complainant exists. In my view, since the case is at the threshold and the investigation is underway, it will be practically scuttling the investigation in case anticipatory bail is granted to the accused-applicants, which will create hurdles in arriving at the truth.”

Accused declared Proclaimed Offender

In June 2024, the Judicial Magistrate of the First Class issued non-bailable warrants against both accused. For two months, police attempted to trace and arrest the accused but failed. Finally, in August 2024, the court issued directions to declare both Pastor Jashan Gill and Satinder Kaur as Proclaimed Offenders.

The court noted, “The perusal of record would show that time and again non-bailable warrants of arrest of the accused were issued but his presence could not be procured. This Court is satisfied that the accused is well aware about the pendency of the present FIR but the accused is not deliberately appearing in the Court. As such, the more coercive method is required to be adopted.” The court rejected the plea without getting into the merits of the case.

However, Satinder Kaur moved an application to stop PO proceedings against her, owing to the fact that police found her innocent. The court dropped the case against her. However, Pastor Gill was declared a Proclaimed Offender in September 2024.

While the case is still underway in the Judicial Magistrate court, the victim’s father has approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking a CBI inquiry.

This report is based on multiple court documents and the statement of the victim’s father.

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