Nuh shelter guard booked after rape complaint

The 19-year-old victim alleged she had complained to officials and through the CM Grievance Redressal Portal in June, but no action was taken.

A private security guard at a one-stop centre in Nuh was booked for allegedly raping a woman who had been placed at the facility for protection on the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, police said on Saturday.

Police said CCTV footage will be examined, while the survivor’s medical examination and judicial statement have been completed. (File photo)

The victim, 19, also alleged that a woman counsellor, who is the guard’s niece, connived with him to cover up the matter after she approached her for help, officers aware of the complaint said, citing her.

Police said the woman had eloped with a man in February, prompting her family to file a missing person complaint at the Pinagwan police station. Investigators later recovered her and found that she had married the man she had eloped with, alleging her family had opposed their relationship. According to police, the couple approached the high court seeking protection, following which the woman was directed to stay at the one-stop centre from March until mid-July.

Inspector Kuldeep Singh, station house officer of the Nuh (City) police station, said the woman informed her husband about the alleged assault after leaving the centre last week and subsequently filed a police complaint, on the basis of which an FIR for rape was registered on Wednesday. “The investigation is underway. CCTV camera footage of the centre will be collected and scanned. Arrest will be made on the basis of the evidence,” Singh said, adding that the woman’s medical examination has been conducted and her statement before a judicial magistrate has been recorded.

Police said the victim had earlier complained to the district programme officer and through the CM Grievance Redressal Portal in June, but no action was taken. The FIR does not clearly specify the date of the alleged rape or the number of alleged incidents, police said.

The woman also alleged that the guard had repeatedly sexually harassed her and forced her to perform daily chores such as preparing tea, and that the counsellor made her consume food allegedly laced with sedatives on the guard’s instructions before he sexually assaulted her. She alleged that despite repeatedly raising the issue, no action was taken.