BENGALURU: A 20-year-old woman and her neighbour were brutally assaulted by a group of migrant workers at a labourers’ shed in the Varthur police limits on Friday night. The police arrested five accused, including three women, on Monday. Three others are absconding.
The victim, Afruja Parveen, is a domestic help. The arrested accused are Baban SK, Suknhar Khatun, Seema Dafdar, Asura Khatun and Fatay Dafdar. The victim and the accused have all migrated from West Bengal.
The police said Afruja lived alone in a shed. She was being followed on her way to work and home by a few boys living near her house. They were pestering her to give them her phone number. She had refused and warned them not to do so. Nursing a grudge, the group allegedly barged into her house on Friday night, picked a quarrel, assaulted her and issued death threats.
On Friday night, Riyaz, a neighbour, came to deliver drinking water. A group of men barged into the premises, locked the house from the outside, and began creating a ruckus. Sensing danger, the woman also locked the door from inside.
But the accused allegedly broke open the door, dragged her out and assaulted her. They also assaulted Riyaz accusing him of being in a relationship with her.
Afruja charged that one of the accused threatened to kill her after his release from jail, if she identified him at the police station.
The police said the accused brutally assaulted the victim with sticks and also kicked her, suspecting her of having an illicit relationship.