Balangir: Four youths, all in their 20s, were arrested in Balangir district on Sunday evening for the alleged gang-rape of a 19-year-old girl on June 8. One of the accused is the girl’s boyfriend, while the others are his friends. Both the accused and the survivor hail from the same village.
The survivor lodged a complaint on Sunday, following which the four were taken into custody. “Investigation is ongoing to determine the exact circumstances and whether others were involved or not,” said Sadananda Pujhari, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Patnagarh.
According to the survivor’s written complaint, her boyfriend had called her around 10:30 pm to meet him at a nearby farmland. While the couple was chatting, three of his friends arrived. The four youths then overpowered her and allegedly took turns raping her.
Police said the teenager’s family was initially reluctant to file a complaint due to fear of social stigma. However, the survivor later came forward and lodged the complaint naming all four, including her boyfriend, with whom she had been in a relationship for the past six months.
“Based on the complaint, we detained the accused for questioning. After gathering credible evidence, we arrested them. Their bail plea was rejected by the court, and they have been sent to judicial custody,” SDPO Pujhari said.
