Hyderabad gang rape: Police carry out scene reconstruction

Hyderabad: Hyderabad police on Sunday carried out scene reconstruction in gang rape of a 17-year-old girl in the up-scale Jubilee Hills.

The police carried the six accused including five juveniles to different locations in Jubilee Hills and Banjara Hills for scene reconstruction as part of the investigation into the gang rape which occurred on May 28.

Amid tight security, the investigators first brought the accused to Amnesia Pub on Road Number 36 Jubilee Hills where the victim and the accused had attended a daytime party, Consu Bakery on Road Number 14 Banjara Hills and the isolated place on Road Number 44 Jubilee Hills where five of the accused sexually assaulted her.

The police gathered information as to who among the accused first approached the victim in the pub and who misbehaved with her. The accused were also questioned about who trapped the victim after she came out of the pub and how they convinced her to board Mercedes car with them for Consu Bakery and what happened in the vehicle enroute.

The investigators also collected information as to why the accused left Mercedes and boarded Innova at the bakery. They were also questioned about the sequence of events that finally led to the sexual assault in the vehicle.

Police questioned all the six accused on Sunday, the second consecutive day. As the four-day police custody of Saduddin Malik, the only major accused in the case, ended on Sunday, he would be produced before the court and will be sent back to Chanchalguda Central Prison.

Potency test was conducted on five accused who were involved in the gang rape. The test was conducted at government-run Osmania Hospital.

Potency test established whether a person is capable of engaging in sexual acts or not.

The police officials will continue questioning the juveniles on Monday. The Juvenile Justice Board had granted their five-day police custody. The custody of three juveniles began on Friday while for the remaining two the police custody began on Saturday.

The Children in Conflict with Law (CCL) as the minors are called by the police, are being questioned from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. After 5 p.m., CCL are taken back to the Juvenile Home.

Meanwhile, there were allegations on Sunday that the accused were served ‘chicken biryani’ during lunch at Jubilee Hills police station. The food was reportedly ordered from a leading hotel. Videos of them were circulated over social media.

Since the accused belong to politically influential families, police had come out under flak from going soft on those who helped them flee after committing the crime.

Since the victim’s family lodged a complaint three days after the crime and the victim revealed to police only on June 2 what exactly happened with her, the accused got sufficient time to escape from the city. They were reportedly arrested in neighbouring states.

Out of five accused who sexually assaulted the girl, four are aged 16-17. The fifth accused is 18-year-old Malik, who has been named as number one accused.

The sixth accused who has been charged only with molestation is one month short of turning 18. He is the son of a MLA of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM).

Four minors charged with gang rape include son of a leader of ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS). The leader is also the chairman of a government-run body. Two others are said to be sons of TRS corporators in Greater Hyderabad and Sangareddy. One of them is said to have played the key role in trapping the victim and lure her to board the car.

Malik (18) and four CCL have been booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 376 D (gang rape), 323 (causing hurt), Section 5 (G) (gang penetrative sexual assault on child) read with Section 6 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 366 (kidnapping a woman) and 366 A (procuration of a minor girl) and Section 67 of Information Technology Act .

Police say the accused could face punishment for not less than 20 years or imprisonment for life till death or even death penalty.

The sixth CCL was not involved in rape but he kissed the victim in the car. He has been booked under IPC Section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 323 and Section 9 (G) read with 10 of POCSO Act. He could face 5-7 years imprisonment.