SIT to handle probe into Sakinaka rape and murder case

Investigations into the brutal rape and murder of a 32-year-old woman in Sakinaka were on Sunday transferred to a special investigation team

Investigations into the brutal rape and murder of a 32-year-old woman in Sakinaka were on Sunday transferred to a special investigation team (SIT).

Investigations into the brutal rape and murder of a 32-year-old woman in Sakinaka were on Sunday transferred to a special investigation team (SIT). The SIT consists of 11 officers, including a woman assistant commissioner of police who heads the team, officials said

The SIT consists of 11 officers, including a woman assistant commissioner of police who heads the team, officials said. The case would be tried in a fast-track court according to Hemant Nagrale, commissioner of Mumbai Police. Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray had announced that the case will be tried in a fast-track court. Pressure had been mounting from various quarters, including from the opposition, to ensure that strictest action is taken in the case and the accused is tried and convicted at the earliest. The police, however, did not disclose the need to set up the SIT.

The woman who was raped and brutalised with an iron rod in Mumbai died while undergoing treatment at a hospital early on Saturday, police said. According to the police, the control room received a phone call at 3.20am on Friday, informing them about an injured couple in Sakinaka. On reaching the spot, the police found a woman, who was bleeding profusely, inside a parked tempo. Police arrested a 45-year-old pavement dweller in connection with the crime on Friday itself after he was spotted exiting the tempo in CCTV footage, officials familiar with the matter said. He was remanded in police custody till September 21. He was booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 302 (murder), 376 (rape), 323 (assault) and 34 (common intention).