By Dhruvi Shah
Three men were detained by Bhubaneswar police in connection with the alleged sexual assault of a young woman in a lodge located in Chandrasekharpur on September 10. The individuals taken into custody were identified as Chandan Kumar Hati, also known as Chandu (25), Prasanna Kumar Acharya (37), and Rajesh Kumar Das (32).
According to the information provided to the police in the complaint filed at a Mahila police station, the suspect named Chandan befriended the girl in her village and convinced her that he would introduce her to a music director who would assist in her development towards a career as a singer. The victim was persuaded to go with Chandan based on these words.
Police stated that Chandan, together with Prasanna, took the girl to a hotel in the city, where she was believed to have an alcoholic beverage laced. Then the woman was allegedly confined to a room and sexually assaulted.
Investigators stated Rajesh, who had been the caretaker of the hotel, was also accused of allegedly assisting the crime by providing the room to the other two. Then all three allegedly made threats against the girl, encouraging her not to report it, and then sent her home.
The woman, however, shared with her older sister the assault, which led to the lodging of a formal complaint. After receiving the FIR, police started the investigation and identified and arrested the accused in a locality in Jagatsinghpur district.
All three accused were interrogated and admitted their involvement in this crime, police said. On Saturday, the person was brought to the court while the police told the reporters that their investigation remains ongoing to find out if any others were responsible for the attack.
The event has caused an uproar in Bhubaneswar, and campaigners are demanding action and measures to ensure that abuse of women does not happen again in the future. Officials said they would look at all aspects of the case in a thorough and comprehensive way to see that justice is done.