BHOPAL: A 28-year-old engineer and his 25-year-old fiancée were allegedly held captive, assaulted and robbed by at least seven men in a forest in Madhya Pradesh's Guna district. The accused allegedly attempted to gang-rape the woman and tried to insert a foreign object into her private parts, police said.
Acting swiftly in the case, the Guna district police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) arrested five of the seven accused within 24 hours of the incident.
The incident took place near Gander village on the highway on Thursday (July 30) evening, when the couple were returning on a motorcycle after offering prayers at a famous hilltop Hanuman Temple.
According to police, three men on a motorcycle approached the couple and told them that one of the tyres of the engineer's motorcycle was punctured. While the engineer was checking the motorcycle, the three men allegedly called four more aides to the spot and assaulted the engineer and his fiancée.
The couple were then allegedly taken to an adjoining forest, where they were held captive, assaulted and robbed.
Police said the woman was possibly tied to a tree, following which the accused attempted to gang-rape her. The accused also allegedly tried to put a foreign object into the young woman's private parts.
While the engineer and his fiancée were being assaulted and robbed, a local resident heard their cries for help and alerted the state police's Dial 112 emergency response service.
"Our nearest emergency response team arrived at the spot within the next 5 minutes. Sensing trouble, the accused decamped from the spot, leaving the young man and his fiancé behind. The duo was safely escorted out of the jungle area by the cops and their statements recorded," Guna district police superintendent Hitika Vasal said on Saturday.
A special investigation team headed by sub divisional officer police (SDOP-Raghogarh) Dipa Dodwe was constituted on the night of July 30.
"Four to five teams worked in coordinated and dedicated manner, not just tracing the accused, but also nabbing them in less than 24 hours. A bounty of Rs 10,000 each was also declared on the arrest of the accused," SP-Guna added.
The five arrested accused, aged between 20 and 30 years, are residents of different parts of Guna district and belong to the semi-nomadic Banjara community.
One of the five accused has been named in a criminal case registered in 2020.
"Our teams are conducting raids to nab the two remaining accused also. I’ll personally supervise the ongoing probe and the prosecution/trial of the accused. We’ll work to fast-track the court trial and ensure that the strictest possible punishment is delivered to the accused in this heinous crime case," Vasal said.
The five arrested men and their two absconding aides have been booked under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Sections 115(2), 70(1), 127(1) and 310(2) for voluntarily causing hurt, attempting gang rape, wrongful confinement and dacoity.