Bengaluru: Four men were arrested Monday for allegedly raping and assaulting a Dalit woman in the Yadgir district of Karnataka, a day after a video of the incident went viral on social media.
The police in Yadgir had registered a case in the incident following the viral video and tracked both the accused and victim down.
While the video only records the assault on the woman, the police said that charges of gang rape were added after she recorded her statement.
“The woman — a labourer — was abducted by these four persons while she was waiting for a bus to return home late at night. They forced her into their car and drove to an isolated farm in Shahapur where they assaulted her and recorded it. The victim says the incident took place about eight months ago,” Dr C.B. Vedamurthy, superintendent of police at Yadgir, told ThePrint.
The police have registered an FIR against the accused under eight sections of the Indian Penal Code, including those related to kidnapping and assault, and also the relevant provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The accused have been identified as Bheemaraya, Lingaraju, Sharanu and Aiyappa — all aged between 23 to 30 years and residents of Shahapur in Yadgir.
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Viral video
A video of the incident went viral on social media Sunday where the accused can be seen thrashing the woman with canes after stripping her naked.
In the 2.5-minute-long video, the woman can be heard pleading with the men to spare her while one of them is seen showing his mobile — possibly a photo — to her and asking if she was the one in the photo, which she denies.
Dr Vedamurthy also said that “the victim and accused do not know each other. We are verifying more details. They spotted her alone and abducted her”.
This case comes on the heels of another alleged gang rape of a student in Mysuru on 24 August. Five men were arrested in the case.
Both cases are also expected to be raised by the Opposition in the ongoing session of the legislative assembly.
“We will raise the matter of Shahapur and Mysuru cases in the House and question the government on the lack of safety for women in the state and breakdown of law and order,” Congress leader Siddaramaiah, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, told the media Monday.
(Edited by Rachel John)
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