Police convince Mysuru gang-rape victim to record statement

Mysuru: Karnataka police have succeeded in convincing the victim of the August 24 Mysuru gang-rape to record her statement against the accused persons, sources said.

The police officers probing the case had visited the family of the victim in Mumbai and managed to convince her.

The investigators have given the victim choice of appearing before the magistrate through video conferencing to record her statement.

The sources said that the officers will also convince her to conduct an in-person identification of the accused soon. She has already identified the perpetrators in photographs.

The incident had taken place on August 24 when the MBA graduate had gone to an isolated place near the foothills of Chamundi hill with a male friend.

A gang of seven miscreants, who had observed the couple frequenting the area had waylaid and demanded a ransom of Rs 3 lakh from them.

When the money was not given, they had assaulted the man and raped the girl one after the other.

The father of the boy had reached the spot worrying after getting a call for money and found the couple. The boy, who was in an almost unconscious state, was admitted to a hospital.

The police registered a complaint 15 hours after the incident had taken place. However, the victim in deep shock refused to talk to anyone and flatly refused to cooperate with the police department.

The case made national headlines and the state government came under severe pressure as protests broke out all over Karnataka demanding the arrest of the rapists. The police succeeded in nabbing all the accused persons from Tamil Nadu.

The victim still chose not to register her statement and went back to Mumbai with her parents. The state government clarified that it will no way pressurise the victim to issue a statement.

However, Congress leader Siddaramaiah demanded that the government should use the legal provision in case of refusal of the victim to register a statement.

He also charged that the ruling BJP is trying to hush up the case by not being serious about getting the statement recorded by the victim.

Meanwhile, the police took the last accused person arrested recently to the scene of the crime.

His statements matched with the other accused persons, the police sources said.