Rs 1 lakh cash reward on absconding rape accused

JAIPUR: Within 24 hours of identifying the man who allegedly raped a 20-year-old Japanese tourist near Jaipur rural's Dudu area, the police on Wednesday announced a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head, taking into account the seriousness of the crime. Anyone who provides reliable information related to the whereabouts of the 24-year-old accused, Ajit Singh Chaudhary alias Jeetram Chaudhary, a tout, will be given the cash reward.
Nearly a dozen police teams carried out raids at a various places, but he continued to evade arrest till late Wednesday. Sources said that the possibility of the man having left the state is not being ruled out. Teams have been rushed to neighbouring states to nab the culprit.
IG, Jaipur range, DC Jain said that during investigation, it has come up Ajit was also known as Jeetram Chaudhary. The police have so far arrested seven men for abetment in the crime and destroying evidences. These men are relatives and friends of the main accused.
Chaudhary befriended the Japanese woman at Jal Mahal on Sunday and took her to the houses of his two cousins, Shivraj Singh and Dharmaveer who have also been arrested. He made her meet the family members to win her trust. The police said that on the pretext of dropping her at her hotel, Chaudhary took her to an isolated place nearly 50 km from Jaipur, forced her onto the ground on the roadside and beat her up when she resisted. He then raped her. He planned to keep the woman hostage in a room and sexually abuse her for a long period of time.
"He was planning to keep the woman hostage, so he called up his two friends Abrar and Wahid, both residents of Mozamabad, a village near the place where he raped the woman, and asked them to arrange for a room. Wahid works in a cooperative society and the keys of its office were with him. So he asked Chaudhary to bring the girl there," said IG, Jaipur range, DC Jain.
When Chaudhary reached the cooperative society's office in Mozamabad, Wahid was already waiting there. However, when they were trying to force her into the room, the woman somehow freed herself and escaped to a few metres where she saw a car approaching. She started screaming. On this, not only Chaudhary and Wahid, but someone who was in the car also sped away. The police are investigating if Chaudhary's friends were also planning to rape her.
On hearing her cries for help, some villagers came to the spot and took her to one of the houses in the village. They placated her and informed the police.
Chaudhary is a resident of Tumbipura village, a few kilometers from the place near Mozamabad on Dudu-Phagi Road where the accused raped the victim on the roadside on Sunday night. Chaudhary is an unlicensed tourist guide who used to dupe foreign tourists and take them to specific showrooms for shopping. These showrooms gave him commission for bringing tourists. Chaudhary was pursuing a course for learning French from a Pondicherry-based institute.
The police said it came up during investigation that Shivraj, Shivraj's brother-in-law Ramveer and Chaudhary's friends Rajveer and Ravindra Singh helped the accused escape after the crime. The police have arrested Wahid (22), Abrar (24), Shivraj (33), Rajveer (23), Ramveer (26), Ravindra Singh (20) and Dharmveer (21). They have been booked for criminal conspiracy, abetment in the crime, destroying evidence, giving him shelter and helping him, police said. Their interrogation is going on and a massive search has been launched for Chaudhary.