Durgapur gang-rape survivor finishes testifying in court

Kolkata: The survivor of the Durgapur gang-rape case, a first-year medical student of a private college in the city, finished her cross-examination before a local court on Saturday.Her deposition was completed over two days in Jan. With Saturday's hearing, the survivor has now completed both her deposition and cross-examination. The proceedings lasted from 11am to 6pm, with a break in between.
Special public prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee, defence lawyer Shekhar Kundu and the survivor's counsel Partha Ghosh said they were hopeful that truth would prevail."We are hopeful that justice will prevail as the survivor completed all legal formalities to make this a watertight case," said Chatterjee.The 22-year-old student was allegedly sexually assaulted in a forested area outside the college campus after she stepped out in the evening with a fellow student. According to the prosecution, other men later arrived at the spot and further assaulted her.In Oct last year, police filed an 861-page charge sheet within 20 days of the crime. The charge sheet accused the survivor's fellow medical student of rape and destruction of evidence.Three other accused — Nasiruddin Sk, Firdaus Sk and Apu Bauri — were charged with gang-rape, dacoity and extortion. Two others, Sk Riazuddin and Sk Safiq, who had earlier confessed before a magistrate, were charged with molestation, dacoity and extortion.Police initially arrested five men from the Bijra area within 48 hours of the incident and later took another accused into custody after evidence pointed to his role in the assault and the attempt to conceal it.