A depressing incident took place in Rajasthans Jodhpur on Sunday, where a minor Dalit girl was gang-raped in front of her boyfriend by three college students, the police said. The students, who assaulted the girls boyfriend before taking turns raping her, were arrested hours later by the police.What happened on Saturday nightSenior police officer Amrita Duhan said that the victim and her boyfriend allegedly eloped from Ajmer on Saturday and arrived in Jodhpur by bus around 10.30 pm. The duo then went to a guest house to get a room but left after the caretaker misbehaved with the girl.According to the police, while they were standing outside the guest house, the trio accused, identified as Samandar Singh, Dharampal Singh and Bhatam Singh, approached them and befriended them by offering food and promising to find them a place to stay. In the wee hours of Sunday, the accused tricked the couple into going to the hockey ground at the old campus of JNVU by telling them that they would take them to the railway station.After reaching the ground, the three students assaulted the boyfriend, gang-raped the minor girl, and fled the spot, the police said. Moreover, the trio made a hasty retreat as morning walkers began to arrive on campus. Then, the boy sought help from them, who then called the police immediately. Three accused, who gang-raped minor and assaulted her boyfriend, were arrestedAfter receiving information, the police launched a search for the accused, deploying a dog squad and a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) team. With the help of the CCTV footage, the police arrested the three at a house in Jodhpurs Ganeshpura. During this, they tried to escape but fell and were injured. Two of them fractured their legs, and the thirds hand was injured, said Duhan. Further, the police also arrested the guest house caretaker for allegedly harassing the minor.Taking notes from this heinous incident, a case has been filed against them under the relevant sections of the IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The three accused were campaigning for a student leader running for students union president at Jai Narayan Vyas University (JNVU) as an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) candidate. The ABVP categorically denied any links with the three. This incident sparked a political conversationThis shocking incident sparked a conversation within the state, with the opposition BJP targeting Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and demanding strict action.Responding to the remarks, the chief minister has slammed the BJP for making “false allegations” for political gains.Heres what CM Ashok Gehlot saidCondemning this act, the chief minister wrote in Hindi, “Our daughters deserve safety and respect. Rape incidents are a stigma for civilized society. No matter how much you condemn such heinous acts, it will remain less. But instead of condemning such incidents, BJP leaders always start making false allegations against the government for political gains.”हमारी बेटियां सुरक्षा व सम्मान की हकदार हैं। बलात्कार की घटनाएं सभ्य समाज के लिए कलंक हैं। ऐसे जघन्य कृत्य की जितनी निंदा की जाए कम है परन्तु भाजपा नेता हमेशा ऐसी घटनाओं की निंदा करने की बजाय राजनीतिक स्वार्थपूर्ति हेतु सरकार पर झूठे आरोप लगाने लग जाते हैं। जोधपुर और मध्य प्रदेश…— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) July 16, 2023“No matter how influential the accused is, the state government will secure the harshest punishment to the culprits to get justice for the innocent daughter,” said in his tweet. Furthermore, the Congress-affiliated National Students Union of India (NSUI), announced that the student group will submit its petition to the governor to protest against the ABVP.
