Delhi Police's arrest of two men for allegedly gang-raping a 16-year-old girl in Greater Noida has sparked a jurisdictional row, with the Uttar Pradesh Police claiming they were never informed despite the crime falling under their jurisdiction.
The alleged incident took place on August 4 on a moving sleeper bus that travelled for 47 kilometres, from Pari Chowk in Greater Noida to Ring Road near Kashmere Gate Inter-State Bus Terminal, where the survivor was dropped off by the accused driver and the conductor.
Following a complaint by the survivor, a Delhi Police team analysed CCTV footage and traced the bus to a parking area in Timarpur, around 15 minutes from Kashmere Gate, where the men were arrested within four hours, the police said.
Also Read | From Greater Noida to Delhi: 47-km bus ride ends in gangrape of 16-year-old
Deep Dive
What legal actions were taken after the gang-rape incident on the Greater Noida to Delhi bus?
Why is there a jurisdictional dispute between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh police regarding the gang-rape case?
How did the 16-year-old girl end up on the bus where she was gang-raped?
As the alleged gangrape came to light on Monday, officials of Greater Noida police claimed the incident was not reported to them before the Delhi Police publicly disclosed the arrests.
{{/usCountry}}As the alleged gangrape came to light on Monday, officials of Greater Noida police claimed the incident was not reported to them before the Delhi Police publicly disclosed the arrests.
{{/usCountry}}In a statement, the Gautam Buddh Nagar police said the alleged incident took place “in the Gautam Buddh Nagar Police Commissionerate area” and that it “was not communicated or reported to the Noida Police by the Delhi Police prior to today”.
The Delhi Police, however, said crimes against women can be registered and probed wherever they are reported. “We were very professional in our conduct. Under the new provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, crimes against women can be registered and investigated wherever they are reported,” Delhi joint commissioner of police (northern range) Madhur Verma said.
According to the Delhi Police, the Class 11 student, who lives in Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh, left her house on August 3 without informing her parents after being reprimanded by her mother over her studies. She intended to travel to her cousin’s home in Noida Sector 63, deputy commissioner of police (north) Niharika Bhatt said.
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In her complaint, the survivor told police that she accidentally got off at Pari Chowk after darkness fell and it began raining. She saw a bus approaching and signalled for it to stop, an officer familiar with the investigation said. The conductor allegedly told her that the bus was headed towards Sector 63, prompting her to board it.
The police said there were no other passengers on the bus at the time of the incident. Shortly after the bus began moving, the conductor allegedly behaved inappropriately with the girl before he and the driver sexually assaulted her. The two men allegedly threatened to kill her when she resisted, the police added.
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“The larger problem was that the curtains had been drawn and the bus was moving. There was no way of knowing what was going on inside,” an officer said. DCP Bhatt did not comment on how many police checkpoints the bus crossed during its journey.
After the incident, the survivor approached the Kashmere Gate police station, following which the police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on charges of gang-rape, kidnapping, and assault and provisions under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.