Durgapur gang rape case: police reconstruct crime scene; male friend arrested

The West Bengal police on Tuesday arrested a male friend of a medical student in West Bengal’s Durgapur, who was allegedly gang-raped on October 10. The survivor’s friend, a resident of Malda, was arrested after his replies were found incoherent, said an officer. With this, the total number of arrests in the case has risen to six. Later in the day, the police reconstructed the crime scene in the presence of all the accused.

Two of the accused were also taken to their respective homes to look for evidence related to the crime that they may have tried to conceal, the officer added.

The second-year medical student hailing from Odisha’s Jaleswar was assaulted outside the campus of a private medical college in a forest area on the night of October 10, when she reportedly went out with a friend for dinner. Two persons were arrested on Monday in connection with the crime. Three others were held earlier on Sunday.

The accused and the survivor’s friend were taken to the forest area to recreate the crime scene. The exercise was videographed and tallied with the suspect’s statements. A forensic team also collected samples from the scene, the officer said.

“The reconstruction of the crime scene was done today [Tuesday] morning. The accused and the survivor’s friend were taken to the crime scene to determine their roles in the assault,” a senior officer told The Hindu.

“The male friend of the student is also under the scanner. We are still questioning him,” Asansol-Durgapur Commissioner of Police Sunil Kumar Choudhary said, adding that the medico-legal examinations of the accused have been conducted and the reports are awaited.

Evidence collected

“Based on the evidence collected and the survivor’s statement, we found that one person committed the physical assault. The role of the other five is being determined through investigation,” Mr. Choudhary said.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, meanwhile, spoke to the survivor and her mother over the phone and assured them of all possible support. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Balasore Pratap Sarangi visited the survivor at the private hospital in West Bengal’s Paschim Bardhaman district, where she is undergoing treatment. Mr. Sarangi, who arrived in Durgapur with a number of BJP workers, was reportedly stopped by the hospital’s security personnel, which led to an argument.

“We are here to meet our daughter… but they are not allowing us,” Mr. Sarangi said. The MP, along with a few party workers from Balasore, was later allowed to meet the medical student.

In Kolkata, BJP workers distributed red chilli powder among women for “self-defence” amid the “worsening law and order” in the State.

(With inputs from PTI)