A 19-year-old woman was allegedly raped by two people inside a bus at Kharghar on the night of February 3. Police arrested one of the accused on Monday who lives in the same building as the survivor. The second accused who is the driver of the bus is still at large.
According to the police, during that night the accused had offered the woman a spiked drink during a pre-wedding celebration in the building. “During the celebration, the woman felt thirsty and went to have some water. The accused called her aside and suggested that she could have some soft-drink if she wanted to. Since both the accused stayed in the same building, the woman did not suspect them and had the soft drink offered by them,” said Vivek Bhoir, assistant inspector, Kharghar police station.
“The bus, which belongs to the other accused, was parked at a secluded place nearby. When the survivor started to feel uneasy, they took her out and offered some more spiked drinks. At one point she was almost unconscious, following which they brought her to the bus and took turns to rape her. After committing the crime, they dumped her on the road, snatched her mobile phone, and fled the spot,” he said.
The woman started screaming for help after she regained consciousness. “A few people spotted her and took her to the police station. After she narrated the incident, we registered a complaint against the accused under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). On Monday, we arrested the first accused, a 19-year-old college student. We are now looking for the bus driver and hope to arrest him soon,” Bhoir said.
