Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was briefed about the gangrape of a 19-year-old student, immediately after he landed at Varanasi, his Parliamentary constituency, on Friday morning. Modi held a detailed meeting with the city police commissioner, divisional commissioner and district magistrate of Varanasi and directed them to take ‘strictest possible action’.
The incident occurred earlier this month, with the survivor claiming that she was raped by as many as 23 people, while being held captive. Nine of the accused have been arrested and a hunt is on for the others.
The police found the young woman in an unconscious state on April 4, on the day her family registered a missing person’s report. The survivor may have been rescued earlier had the family not wasted time in trying to locate her by themselves. Her father told news agency ANI that they did not inform the police immediately, fearing ‘adverse reaction’ from people in society.
According to the police, the student was preparing for admission to a sports course and regularly went to a college ground for running practice. It was from there that she was lured to a hookah in the Pishachmochan area by a ‘friend’ on March 29.
“As per her statement, the friend took her to a hookah bar, where other men joined. The girl alleged that she was drugged with a spiked cold drink and then taken to different hotels in the Sigra area, where she was gang-raped,” a senior police official said.
The survivor has alleged that 23 people raped her over a span of seven days. Police have confirmed that some of the accused were known to her, including acquaintances from Instagram and former classmates.
“She was intoxicated many times by many people and gang-raped. The involvement of so many men indicates that it was a planned attempt. My daughter studied Commerce in her intermediate, and was planning to pursue a career in sports. I do not know or recognise any accused,” her father told ANI.
Chandra Kant Meena, DCP, Varuna Zone told the media that while the girl initially left willingly with her friend, the situation escalated rapidly. “The girl had initially left willingly with her friend. A missing person report was filed by her family on April 4, and she was found the same day. At that time, no complaint of sexual assault was made by her or her family,” he said.
The case has been registered under relevant sections at the Lalpur Pandeypur police station. He said that the remaining accused will be arrested soon. CCTV footage from the hookah bar and other locations is being examined as part of the investigation.
