2 army officers, 2 women attacked by 6 men while picnicking in MP’s Jam Gate; sexual assault suspected

One officer has expressed concern that one of the women might have been sexually assaulted, but she is yet to give her statement. 2 have been arrested, search for others is ongoing.

Representational image of Jam Gate | Iram Nafis Siddique | ThePrint

Bhopal: Two young army officers and two women were attacked by six men while picnicking at Jam Gate in Indore district at 2 am Wednesday.

Two of the accused persons have been arrested.

One officer has expressed concern that one of the women might have been sexually assaulted by the attackers, leading the police to book them for rape, among other charges. The woman, however, is yet to give her statement.

The two officers are undergoing Young Officers Course at the Infantry School in Mhow cantonment town.

Speaking to ThePrint, Additional Superintendent of Police Rupesh Dwivedi said that the two army officers and women were parked about 200 metres into one of the inroads of Jam Gate—a scenic spot located on the Mhow-Mandleshwar Road, about 30 km from Indore—when they were attacked.

“These people thrashed the two army officers and tried to loot them. But as the two were not carrying much on them except their cell phones, they asked one of the army officers to go along with his female friend and fetch Rs 10 lakh,” said Dwivedi.

The army officer and the woman drove instead to the army unit and reported the attack. The unit then alerted the police at around 4.30 am. Police from Badgonda station, about 28 km from Jam Gate, arrived at the scene within 20 minutes.

When the attackers saw the police coming, they fled the spot.

However, before the police arrived, one of the army officers and the woman, who were still being held hostage by the attackers, were kept separated.

“This has led the male army officer to suspect that the woman accompanying him was raped. But the woman has refused to record her statement. We have invoked sections of rape at the moment, but it will only come into effect if the woman says so,” added Dwivedi.

The police have booked the accused under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 70 (gang rape), 310-2 (dacoity), 308-2 (extortion) and 115-2 (voluntarily causing hurt), along with sections of arms act.

All four were sent for medical examinations. The two army officers have injuries, but they are not severe. The woman, who is suspected to have been raped, has injuries including scratch marks. However, the medical report did not clearly confirm rape or gang rape, said a police officer requesting anonymity.

“We cannot conclude even with the medical (report) that the woman has been raped or gang raped until and unless she herself says so. We have invoked the section to ensure that in case she records a statement to that extent, these sections can come into effect,” explained Dwivedi.

The police also pointed out that considering the incident happened in the jungle area, the investigation is particularly challenging since there is no cell phone connectivity, no CCTV cameras and hardly any witnesses.

Within 12 hours of the crime being reported, though, the police successfully had identified the six suspects and apprehended two of them. While the search for the remaining four is ongoing, the police are yet to disclose the identities of the two arrested as they are set to undergo an identification parade. The two detained are 23 and 27 years old. According to Dwivedi, at least three of the six have past criminal records.