THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The gang-rape of a woman abetted by her husband near Kadinamkulam was not accidental and was carefully planned by the group, the police investigation has revealed. The 24-year-old woman, who is the mother of two children, was raped by a group of men with the consent of her husband. On Sunday, Kadinamkulam police arrested Noufal, a native of Channankara, in whose autorickshaw the woman was transported from the house of another accused Rajan Selestian at Vettuthura to an empty plot near Channankara in Kadinamkulam, where she was attacked and raped.
The police said Noufal did not rape the woman but played an active role in forcefully transporting her to the crime spot and facilitated the crime. The police said they have identified the three people involved in the crime. Mansoor, Akbar Shah and Arshad took turns to attack the woman, the police said. “Mansoor and Akbar Shah manhandled the woman. Mansoor even tortured her with cigarette butts and also hit the woman’s five-year-old son,” said a police source.
Meanwhile, Arshad snatched two mobile phones and Rs 1,000 from the woman. “She had two phones- one hers and the other belonged to her husband,” the source added. The police during the interrogation found out that the husband had forced the woman into prostitution. “She was threatened and forced to go with strangers thrice against her will,” the sources said.
“The victim belonged to a financially weak family and her husband is an active drug addict,” the source said. The police said this clearly underscores that the brutality committed on the woman was not accidental. The woman had earlier told the police that she had seen her husband taking money from one of the accused while they were at the beach.
The police said they will corroborate the statement after getting the accused in their custody. Meanwhile, the police produced Noufal in the court and he was remanded. The woman’s dress will also be sent for chemical examination in the coming days.
Drug deal surfaces
The police have found that out of the seven arrested, two are active drug users, one of them being the woman’s husband. The police said they will also probe whether the drug dealings have got anything to do with the crime. All the culprits were in an inebriated state when the crime occurred, the police said.
Women’s panel intervenes
The National Women’s Commission has registered a suo motu case and asked the state government to submit a report on the incident. The commission also directed DGP R Sreelekha to inform the action taken by the police till the chargesheet is filed.