As per the survivor, the three accused forcibly kissed her, disrobed her, and clicked videos and photos of the act.
Published:
As per the survivor, the three accused forcibly kissed her, disrobed her, and clicked videos and photos of the act.
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3 Accused Held; Photos With BJP Leaders Surface Online
(Trigger warning: descriptions of sexual assault)
The Uttar Pradesh police on Sunday, 31 December 2023 arrested the three accused in connection with the alleged rape of a student of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-BHU campus.
Massive protests had broken out on the IIT-BHU campus when the incident was reported on 1 November 2023.
The in-charge of Varanasi’s Lanka police station Shivakant Mishra said that the accused have been identified as Kunal Pandey, Anand alias Abhishek Chauhan, and Saksham Patel.
Who Are The Accused?
As per sources, Mishra, Chauhan, and Patel are all members of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) IT Cell. Soon after their arrest, several images of the three attending IT cell meetings surfaced on social media.
Their photographs with several BJP leaders are also doing the rounds.
A political row erupted with Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav alleging on X that the three were BJP members.
The Congress party also issued a statement alleging that the BJP “protects and promotes rapists”. The Quint has not been able to independently verify their connection to the party. Meanwhile, the BJP has not made a statement on their alleged links to the party.
What Happened on 1 November
In her complaint filed at the Lanka police station, the survivor had alleged that the three men forcibly kissed her, disrobed her, and clicked videos and photos of the act.
Based on a complaint filed by the woman student, an FIR was lodged on 2 November 2023 under sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and under 66E (capturing, publishing, transmitting private photos without consent) of the Information Technology (IT) Act.
“They parked their motorcycle there and separated my friend and me. They shut my mouth tightly and took me to a corner, kissed me forcibly, took off my clothes, and recorded photos and videos. When I shouted for help, they threatened to kill me. They let me go after 10-15 minutes,” she had said.
Later, sections 376-D (gangrape), 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), and 509 (Criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication) of the IPC were added to the FIR.
(This is a developing story. It will be updated with more information as and when they emerge.)
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