Mere robbery charges filed in ghaziabad gangrape

The Ghaziabad police have filed a chargesheet under IPC sections of robbery in the case in which a 24-year-old woman was gangraped by five men from Raispur village on February 5.

The Ghaziabad police have filed a chargesheet under IPC sections of robbery in the case in which a 24-year-old woman was gangraped by five men from Raispur village on February 5.

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The rape had taken place in the presence of her engineer-boyfriend in the fields of Raispur road near the posh Kamla Nehru Nagar locality.

Police officials claim that the indifferent and unsupportive attitude of the victim and her family made them take off the rape charges and file a mere robbery case.

“We approached her and her family and tired to convince them about her safety, security and privacy several times. But they did consider any of our requests. The woman never turned up before a court or

even recorded a statement in the police station,” senior superintendent of police (SSP) Raghubir Lal told Hindustan Times.

Investigators also revealed that the victim’s marriage had been fixed and that she had even tried to commit suicide when the police tried to convince her to come forward against the five accused.

“Her father, who works in a manufacturing unit in the city, also threatened to resign from his job if his daughter was made to depose before the court," the SSP said.

Filing mere robbery charges against the accused means that the five can be let off easily. Sources said that two of them were habitual of targeting couples who were on the lookout for privacy in isolated spots. They had been involved in two similar cases earlier, both of which had gone unreported.

On February 5, the victim and her 23-year-old engineer-boyfriend, Krishna Singh, had decided to meet for the first time after a hooking up on a social networking website. The five men accosted the duo in an isolated spot in a compromising position, which instigated them to assault Singh and rape the woman.

Singh’s laptop and mobile were also robbed by them, about which he complained to the police. On further interrogation by the police, Singh broke down and narrated the entire incident. His cell phone and laptop have been recovered.