New Delhi:
A 30-year-old married woman who was allegedly gang raped by five men in Bihar’s Begusarai district five months ago was thrown off the roof of a building following another attack, the police have said.
A man has been arrested and a search is going on for a second accused.
The woman suffered critical injuries including to her head after falling from a height of about 12-15 feet on Monday night, her family said. She was initially taken to a local health centre and later shifted to a hospital in the city.
Her family alleged the attack was part of a constantly threatening effort to force her to withdraw the gang rape case filed in June. They alleged they had been threatened and put under immense pressure to reach a “compromise”, after which they had complained to the police.
The police did nothing on their complaint, the family alleged. Following the horrific attack on Monday, another first information report (FIR) has been filed against two accused based on the woman’s statement. A suspect identified as Bhongal Kumar alias Bhongal Mahto has been arrested, while the second is on the run.
The assault came nearly five months after the woman was allegedly gang raped. According to her complaint in June, she stepped out of her house around 11.30 pm to relieve herself when five men attacked her. The accused allegedly locked her husband inside a room before restraining and gagging her. She was then taken to an isolated place where all five men allegedly raped and physically assaulted her. She was later abandoned near her house.
The brutality of the assault emerged during her medical treatment when doctors recovered what police described as a “cartridge-like object” along with a stone and a piece of wood from her private parts. She had complained of severe pain and needed further medical examination and treatment.
The police initially filed a case of gang rape and identified five men as accused, out of which four had been arrested. The fifth accused is on the run.
The woman’s family alleged that the threats did not stop after the case was filed. Three months after the gang rape, some people allegedly entered their house and tried to assault her again, they said.
The family said they had approached the police over that incident as well, adding the repeated threats and attacks were meant to force her and her relatives to withdraw the criminal case.
On Monday, two men allegedly entered her house, took her to the terrace and threw her off the roof. The fall left her critically injured.
The case has triggered a political reaction with Leader of the Opposition Tejashwi Yadav attacking the Bihar government over women’s safety and the law-and-order situation. He questioned how a woman who had already reported a serious sexual assault could allegedly face repeated threats and another attack.
The family has also sought an investigation into why their complaints of intimidation and pressure to settle the gang rape case was not heard.
