In a crime that seems to be a repeat of the Pollachi rape case as it's infamously known, eight persons including three school students have been arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 22-year-old Dalit woman repeatedly over a period of seven months. According to the police, the accused threatened to leak private videos of the woman and continued to rape her over months.
The complaint states that Hariharan alias Saravanan (27) befriended the woman over social media, and the two became friends. Further, Hariharan and the woman had gotten into a physical relationship, which was recorded by the former. “One day when Hariharan was with his friends, they watched this video and got the details from him. They contacted her and threatened to leak the video, and raped her multiple times between August 2021 and March 2022”, the police said. The list of accused includes a DMK functionary and three school-going students.
The incident came to light after the survivor approached the women’s helpline. “She decided to contact women’s helpline number 181 and reported it. The case was then taken up by the Virudhunagar Rural police”, the police added. Incidentally, the woman had asked her neighbour, a man named Madaswamy (37), to help her get out of the situation. The police however say that he too used the video to threaten and sexually assault her.
Based on the woman’s complaint filed on Sunday, March 20, an FIR was registered the same day under sections 376(2)(n) (rape), 354(c) (voyeurism), 354(D) (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), read with 66(e) (violation of privacy) of Information Technology (IT) Act and 3(1)(w)(1) (punishment for offences atrocities), 3(2)(v) (punishment for offences atrocities) of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) (SC/ST (POA)) Act against eight persons – Hariharan, Madasamy (37), Praveen (22), Junaith Ahmed (27), one 18-year-old, two 17-year-olds and one 15-year-old boy.
All eight have been arrested and further investigation is underway by the police. Junaith Ahmed is a DMK party functionary. The police are also trying to find if these people are involved in any other similar crimes.