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Man held after rape complainant dies in Karnataka: Police
According to the police, the incident took place on May 23 when prime accused Mallappa Gundappa and his three accomplices allegedly abducted the victim from her house located in Sindanur taluk and gang-raped her.
A 45-year-old woman who was allegedly gang-raped has succumbed to her injuries during treatment, in Karnataka’s Raichur district, police said on Saturday, adding that the prime accused in the case has been arrested while search is on for three others.
According to the police, the incident took place on May 23 when prime accused Mallappa Gundappa and his three accomplices allegedly abducted the victim from her house located in Sindanur taluk and gang-raped her. While the victim’s medical report has ruled out rape, the police have booked the four accused on charges of sexual assault based on her statement before death, a police official familiar with the case said.
“The victim made a living out stitching tarpaulins, and met Gundappa over the same. The accused often harassed the victim and was forcing her for a physical relationship. However, when she objected, Gundappa abducted her from near her house on May 23. The accused, along with three of his accomplices, raped the victim near a canal in the village and fled the spot. A passerby found the woman lying in a pool of blood and informed her son, following which she was rushed to Sindhnur Government Hospital,”police said, according to information it received from a villager Narayanappa who found the woman lying under bridge.
The woman’s condition worsened on May 24, and she was sent to Raichur institute of medical sciences (RIMS) where she succumbed to her injuries on May 25, police added.
During her treatment, the victim told the police that Gundappa, along with three others, raped her, said DYSP Venungopal.
The victim’s son later lodged a complaint with the Sindhanur police station, and a case of rape was lodged against Mallappa and three others.
“The four accused have been booked under sections 302(murder) 373( rape) 323 (assault) 201 (giving false information about crime) of the Indian Penal Code. The prime accused, Gundappa, was immediately arrested, and a search operation has been lodged for his three accomplices,” Lingasugu deputy superintendent of police Venu Gopal said.
“The victim’s medical report has ruled out rape, but we have added the provisions of sexual assault based on her dying statement. We are investigating the case from all angles,”Gopal added.
He said the death caused by physical assault, according to preliminary investigation.
When contacted RIMS director Dr Amara Varma said, “The victim succumbed to external injuries but prima facie the doctors who examined her did not find marks of rape. A detailed autopsy report will be available soon and the exact reason of death would be known.”
