Four get 20 years jail for gang rape of lady doctor in Vellore; 5th accused facing trial

VELLORE: The Vellore mahila court on Thursday sentenced four men to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for gang-raping a lady doctor after kidnapping her in an auto in Katpadi on March 16, 2022.

Vellore sessions judge (fast track mahila court) S Mageswari Banu Rekha imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on each of them. The convicted men have been identified as Parthiban, an auto driver, Mani alias Manikandan, a daily wage worker, and his friends Bharath and Santhosh. Another accused is a juvenile who is facing trial before the juvenile justice board.

According to the prosecution, the lady doctor and her male colleague were waiting for an auto at 12.30am on March 16, 2022, after watching a second show at a theatre in Katpadi. A gang of five people in an auto approached them and inquired where they wanted to go. They claimed the vehicle was a share auto and invited them to board. The gang took them to the Palar river bed, where they attacked her colleague and took turns raping the doctor while keeping her friend at knifepoint.

The gang members robbed them of their mobile phones, two sovereign gold jewellery and their ATM cards. They withdrew Rs 40,000 using the ATM card.

Initially, the woman and her colleague did not lodge a complaint out of fear. The issue came to light after three of the gang were involved in a drunken brawl two days after the crime. Police arrested them, and upon interrogation, they confessed to kidnapping the lady doctor and her colleague, gang-raping her, and robbing them of their valuables.

Police arrested two others involved in the crime following their confession. The police later received an online complaint from the doctor.

The incident sparked widespread outrage, with opposition parties charging that the law and order situation had deteriorated in the state. Chief minister M K Stalin made a statement on the floor of the assembly outlining the police action against the gang members.