Three held in Maihar gang rape case, hunt on for others

Bhopal: Three people, including a minor, have been arrested in connection with the gang rape of a 27-year-old woman in Maihar, police said on Wednesday. A search is under way for three others named in the case.The incident occurred in the jungles of the Papra Pahad area in Maihar district on June 15. However, it came to light after police arrested a few accused who kidnapped a youth from the Amarpatan police station area on June 23. On June 23, at around 6:30 pm, police received information that a youth identified as Arvind Loni was kidnapped by 6-7 people from Kumhari village in the Amarpatan police station area. It was also reported that the villagers caught one Amit Kushwaha, who came with the kidnappers. Acting on this, police teams began searching for the accused following the instructions of SP Maihar, Sudhir Agarwal. A total of five teams were constituted. In a few hours, police teams rescued Amit Loni from the accused and arrested three persons: Pushpendra Kushwaha, Balram Yadav, and Amit Kushwaha. A case was registered at Amarpatan police station, and so far, a total of eight accused have been arrested in connection with the kidnapping, police said on Wednesday. A car and two motorcycles used in the kidnapping were also seized, police said.When accused Pushpendra Kushwaha and Amit Kushwaha were interrogated, they informed police that on June 15, Pushpendra Kushwaha went to the jungles of Papra Pahad with one friend, Ajay Kushwaha, and a 27-year-old female on a motorcycle. They told police that in the jungles, accused Bunty Singh and three of his accomplices intercepted them. They misbehaved with Pushpendra, Ajay, and their female friend, snatched their phones and jewellery, and later took turns raping the woman. After this, the accused forced Pushpendra and Ajay to also rape the woman and filmed it. They were now threatening and blackmailing Pushpendra and Ajay with the footage. On June 23, they went to Kumhari village to retrieve the phone and recover the footage, accused Pushpendra and Amit Kushwaha alleged before police. The survivor, however, was not found initially, but later she approached police and made a complaint. Based on her complaint, a case of rape was registered against six accused, including Pushpendra Kushwaha, Bunty Singh, Ajay Kushwaha, and three unidentified accused.During the investigation, the names of two more accused who shot a video of the incident were also included. So far, three accused, including a minor, have been arrested, and the search for others is ongoing, police said.