The Daily Telegraph

Indian men allegedly raped victim again for failing to drop case

- By Andrew Marszal in New Delhi

FIVE Indian men allegedly gang-raped a low-caste woman for the second time in three years to “punish” her after she refused to drop charges against them for the initial crime.

The Dalit – or “untouchabl­e” – student and her family had moved cities to escape the men who first allegedly assaulted her in Bhiwani in 2013. But the men, who remain at large, tracked her down and attacked her as she left her university campus in nearby Rohtak on Wednesday, she told police.

“I got scared seeing them. They forcefully pushed me inside the car. They were the same men who had raped me earlier,” the victim, who is in her early 20s, said in a statement.

She passed out during the alleged assault before being abandoned by the men by the roadside. Passers-by found her lying unconsciou­s with her clothes torn and took her to hospital.

The woman’s family said the assault was an attempt to intimidate or punish her after they refused to accept an outof-court settlement and ignored the men’s “constant threats” against pursuing legal proceeding­s.

“They had offered us Rs. 50 lakh (£50,000) as well. But we want justice. They should be given strict punishment so that we get justice,” her brother told the Hindustan Times.

“We were getting constant threats from the accused to reach a compromise outside the court but we remained firm. That’s why they have attacked her again.”

Only two of the five accused in the 2013 crime were ever arrested and even these men were released on bail, local reports said. A High Court case is pending for the original crime.

The accused are in their late 20s and at least three of them are from upper caste families.

Women from India’s lower castes are often perceived as “easy targets” for rapists, with such crimes rarely reported. They are less likely to receive justice and are frequently stigmatise­d after attacks despite being the victim.

No new arrests have been made although a search operation is on to find the men, police said.

“We have sent different teams to catch the culprits but no one has been arrested yet. The girl told us that these very men had raped her in 2013,” a local police inspector told ANI news agency.

“The matter is currently going on in the High Court. We are trying to arrest the accused as soon as possible.”

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