20-year-old married woman kidnapped, gang-raped in Vasai

A 20-year-old married woman was allegedly kidnapped and later raped by four men in Waliv, Vasai. After being locked in a room for a week, the survivor escaped on Friday and lodged a complaint at the local police station. While the police have arrested three of the accused, one is absconding.

According to sources, on the afternoon of August 5, the four accused, aged between 25 and 30, stormed into the woman's house and gagged her with a handkerchief, after which she fell unconscious. They then took her to a lonely spot about half a kilometre from her house and locked her in a room, where she was raped for a week. It was on the eighth day, when the kidnappers were away that she managed to flee and report the matter to the police.

The accused reside in the same area as the woman, and work as daily wage workers. During questioning, it emerged that the survivor and two of the accused, who were neighbours, used to have frequent quarrels. The police had even registered an NC after the husband and wife filed a complaint about them recently.

The survivor's husband is also under the scanner of the Waliv police, because after his wife went missing, he did not register a complaint with the police. "We have registered a case under section 376(g), 363, 343 and 328 for gang-rape and kidnapping. Three of the accused have been arrested, and we are trying to trace the fourth. Investigations are on," said police sub-inspector, Ranjeet Shirsath.