The Haryana Police on Monday arrested eight men, including a Nepali, in connection with the gang rape and murder of a mentally challenged woman from Nepal at Rohtak.
The Director-General of Police, Y.P. Singhal, who visited the crime scene after protests erupted over the brutal assault on the woman, said the Nepali national, Santosh, played a key role in the crime. The remaining seven accused were all residents of Gaddi Kheri village of Rohtak district and were arrested from different parts of the National Capital Region.
The officer said apart from Santosh, the other arrested accused are Rajesh alias Ghuchadu, Sunil alias Sheela, Sarvar alias Billu, Manbir, Sunil alias Madha, Pawan, Parmod alias Padam.
The ninth accused, Sheelkaram, allegedly committed suicide at Bawana in northwest Delhi. According to Haryana Minister O.P. Dhankar, Sheelkaram took his life by consuming poison.
Mr. Singhal claimed that all the accused have confessed to their crime. He said the woman was not kidnapped but had left home on her own. The accused murdered her to destroy all evidence as she had threatened to lodge a complaint against them.
While Mr. Singhal said the police were still searching for one more suspect, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said in Chandigarh that about four-five suspects were still at large. Mr. Khattar said the police could have done better by arresting the accused earlier, but still lauded the force for doing a "good job" in working out a “blind case”.
He said considering that it was a brutal crime, the State would seek exemplary punishment for the accused.
The State Government and the police had come under criticism for their handling of the case since there was no development in the incident even after a week of the woman went missing on February 1. Subsequently, her body was found dumped in a field on the Rohtak-Hisar highway on February 4. There were cut and injury marks on her body.
The post-mortem conducted at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences had confirmed rape.
The Haryana Police had constituted a Special Investigation Team to probe the case and announced Rs 1 lakh award for any credible information, which may lead to the arrest of the accused.
