I too was raped by mill assailants: Mumbai teen

Another case of sexual assault by the five accused in the Mumbai photojournalist gang-rape case has come to light, with a woman alleging that she was raped by some of them at the defunct Shakti Mills compound in Mumbai.

The photojournalist gang rape accused could be involved in another gang rape at the same spot in Mumbai.

A 19-year-old filed a police complaint on Monday saying she was gangraped by five men at Shakti Mills compound a month ago.

Of the five, three of the accused — Mohammad Salim Ansari, 27, Mohammad Kasim Shaikh alias Bangali, 20, and Vijay Jadhav, 20 — are in police custody for the gang rape of the 22-year-old photojournalist on August 22.

The police have identified the other two accused as Ashfaq and a minor (17 years old), who has been arrested.

The woman had gone away from the city after the incident on July 31 and returned only on Monday, when she lodged a complaint at Bhandup police station in eastern suburbs of Mumbai.

As per her statement, on July 31, she and her boyfriend had gone to a spot near Mahalaxmi station and had later taken a shortcut back to the station as they were getting late. As they walked down the mill lane to the tracks, the accused stopped them. “They tied up her friend with her dupatta and raped the girl,” said deputy commissioner of police Vinayak Deshmukh.

This is the second case of gang rape that has been officially registered against Salim, Bangaliand Vijay, who, according to the police, have raped at least four women on the Shakti Mill premises.

The woman contended that she recognised the assailants from the sketches released by police after the gang rape of a 22-year-old photo-journalist and the assault on her male colleague on August 22.

A senior police official told the media on Tuesday that the five accused of gangraping the photo-journalist have confessed to committing similar crimes.

Their victims included a woman rag picker and a commercial sex-worker.

The official said the new complaint would also be thoroughly investigated.