The 23-year-old victim of gang-rape might have escaped her ordeal if the company she was working for had provided transport facilities to commute home. But it was not to be.
“The small BPO firm that she was working for had no transport facilities, and she commuted on her own,” confirmed Rohini Katoch Sepat, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South East).
The girl was with her colleague and tried to hail an autorickshaw to return home. That was when the van stopped by and the cleaner offered to drop her at Madivala. Not able to find an auto then, the girl finally decided to get into the van. The friend tried to dissuade her as there were no other passengers in the vehicle. However, she insisted and got into the vehicle, a senior police official said.
Driven to a secluded spot The girl, in her statement to the police, said that the van driver did not stop at Madivala, but veered off course and circled the secluded areas, which she was unable to identify.
Incidentally, parts of Madivala, Agara and Domlur have pockets that are deserted at night. Police suspect that the victim was driven to a secluded spot off Old Airport Road, where the van driver and cleaner threatened her and sexually assaulted her.
In her statement, the girl is reported to have said that the driver had played Kannada music during her three-hour ordeal in an attempt to prevent her screams being heard. They also spoke in Kannada, she said.
CCTV footage being analysed
City police have begun analysing the CCTV footage from a set of traffic cameras on the suspected route taken, and from cameras at private establishments such as ATM kiosks along the route, to identify the van in which the girl was raped.
A special team, led by DCP Rohini Katoch Sepat, is probing the incident. The victim is said to have offered the police precious little in terms of clues regarding the vehicle. “We are yet to identify the registration number of the van. We only have a broad description of the van and its colour, and the clue that the two in the van were speaking in Kannada,” said a senior police official probing the case. Over 18 CCTV cameras in the route are being examined to ascertain whether it was a white or yellow registration plate.
In shock, but her condition is fine
The victim, who was admitted to St. John’s Medical College and Hospital, was discharged on Monday morning. “The girl came in around 2 a.m. on Sunday. A medical examination was conducted on her. She was treated at the hospital and later discharged after her medical condition was fine,” said a hospital source.
The girl is presently in the care of her family members, who have landed in the city from Gwalior on Monday. “Her medical condition is fine. But, she is shocked and she needs counselling. We will assist her with the mental health support that she needs,” said a woman police official tasked with coordinating with her in the case.
Incidents in Karnataka (2014)
| Rapes: | 1,324 |
|---|---|
| Assault on women with intent to outrage modesty: | 5,263 |
| Insult to the modesty of women: | 170 |
| Total sexual offences: | 6,779 |
| Rapes in Bengaluru (2014): | 104 |
