BENGALURU: A 16-year-old girl was allegedly raped over six days inside the houses of two women tailors in Bandepalya, southeast Bengaluru.
Six people have been arrested in connection with the incident which came to light when the girl’s mother noticed sudden deterioration in her health and took her to a doctor. Medical reports confirmed that the girl was repeatedly raped.
Based on the mother’s complaint, HSR Layout police booked the suspects, including two women, under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act and IPC 376 (rape). The accused are Rajeshwari, Keshava Murthy, Kalavati, Rafiq, Sharat and Satya Raju, all in mid-30s and residents of Bandepalya and surrounding areas.
Rajeshwari and Kalavati lived near the house of the girl who frequented their houses after school to learn tailoring.
According to the girl, Rajeshwari took her out on February 28 afternoon. “I was resting in the house and my parents had gone out for work. Rajeshwari came to my house saying my mother was waiting for me and took me to her house. There, she gave me fruit juice. After drinking that I fell unconscious. When I regained consciousness, I found myself lying on a bed and there were blood stains on my legs and other parts of my body,” the girl stated.
Rajeshwari warned her of consequences if she revealed what had happened. “Rajeshwari later took me to Kalavati’s house where I was raped by other men on different days. Despite my ill health due to physical and mental torture, Rajeshwari and Kalavati were forcing me to visit their houses regularly,” the girl alleged.
On March 6, Rajeshwari reportedly asked the girl to come to her house. “That day, the girl’s mother was at home and she noticed that her daughter was disturbed. Then, she found blood stains on her clothes and when enquired, the girl revealed everything,” police said.
The same night, the mother filed a complaint. Four special teams were formed to nab the miscreants.
“Rajeshwari and Kalavati fled the city as they got wind of the complaint. We secured them on the outskirts of the city on March 7 evening and after questioning, collected details of the four men. One by one, we arrested them and produced them all before the court on March 8. They are in judicial custody now,” an investigating officer said.
Keshava Murthy from Hosur works as general manager in an automobile firm. Satya Raju is a contractor from Koramangala. Sharat from Yelahanka and Raffiq from Begur are businessmen. Rajeshwari and Kalavati were sex workers and took money from the men after they sexually assaulted the girl, police said.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)
