Crime

Some very intimate WhatsApp chats loaded with extreme vulgar discussions about 'longevity of sex hours' took centre stage on the fixation of charges of the much talked about Durgapur medical student's alleged gang rape case at the Special District Judge's Court today.

 

The victim girl and her boyfriend, according to the defense counsel, were preparing for a physical relationship, and this, he said rather was intended as warm-up for a consensual act, which, in no circumstance, would attract a rape charge to be slapped against the boyfriend of the victim.

 

The Block Land & Land Revenue Officer, the Assistant Regional Transport Officer and one online quick-commerce platform have been summoned by the Special Additional District Judge (Session)'s Court today to appear as the witnesses of the Durgapur medical student's alleged gang rape case. 

 

After the charges against the six accused were framed late this afternoon, the Special Public Prosecutor in the case Bivas Chatterjee put forward a list of 21 witnesses and on the first day of hearing of the case, scheduled on 19 November, Chatterjee preferred to present the BLRO, the ARTO and the the online company as the witnesses. The ARTO and the BLLRO, as was learnt, have been listed to clarify the names of the owners of the motorcycles seized by the police from the possession of the accused and the land officer is to clarify the nature of the land of the place of occurrence, which happens to be a peri-urban forest.

 

The medical student hailing from Jsleswar, Odisha allegedly was gang raped while she had been to the forest a km away from campus with her classmate Wasif Ali on 10 October after 9 pm and the accused allegedly had snatched her cellphone and extorted cash. The police first had arrested five youths of local Bijra village and after four days of the incident, booked the victim's boyfriend Wasef.

 

The New Township Police Station filed the charge-sheet in the case on 30 October, which too was questioned by the Defense lawyers alleging that the Prosecution was in a hurry and perfunctorily expedited filing of charge-sheet.

 

Defence Counsel Sekhar Kundu appearing for Wasef, besides moving a bail petition, also demanded the CCTV footages of 7 October of the IQ City Medical College that he claimed, was very important to establish Wasef's innocence. Also, he claimed that several 'very intimate' WhatsApp contents exchanged between the victim and her boyfriend suggests that the physical retaliation between the duo was consensual and rape charge against Wasef doesn't stand. 

 

The Court after rejection of bail petitions, framed charges of gang-rape, using criminal force on a woman, outrage of modesty,  rape, robbery [under Sections - 70(1), 74, 75, 76, 78, 79, 310] of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against the six accused including the victim's boyfriend today.

 

The Special ADJ (Session),  Lokesh Pathak, after adjournment of Court further called two of the accused Riazuddin Sheikh and Safikul Sheikh - those filed petitions to become apptovers, to record their statements at his office chamber in the evening.